Traumatic Brain Injury

Federal Lawsuit Involving Florida Inmate that Sustained TBI From 2006 Beating in Broward County Jail Goes to Trial in Miami

September 1, 2008 | by David J. Halberg, Esq.

A federal lawsuit filed by a former inmate against the Broward County Sheriff’s Office is set to go to trial in Miami on Tuesday. Dana Jones is suing the Sheriff’s Office and Armor Correctional Health Services for medical costs and unspecified damages following a severe beating he received by other inmates while he was detained at the jail in December 2006.

Jones’s brain injuries were so severe that he went into a coma. The 46-year-old now resides at a nursing home in Pompano Beach. According to Jones, the Sheriff’s Office and the jail’s medical provider neglected to protect him from other inmates, ignored his prior mental condition, and botched an investigation into whether deputies at the jail were involved in the altercation that lead to his beating.

Other inmates that were at the jail when the beating happened said Jones had made a racist remark to two of the detention deputies, who happened to be black. He was found on the floor of the jail and was gurgling his own blood. Jones’s family members were not told for six days that he was in the hospital. They were initially informed that he hurt himself in a fall accident.

Broward County Jury Awards South Florida Family $35 Million for Medical Malpractice that Caused Son’s Birth Injury

June 19, 2008 | by David J. Halberg, Esq.

In South Florida, a Broward County jury has ordered the North Broward Hospital District to pay the Lauderhill family of 8-year-old Darian Brown $35 million for medical malpractice. Darian sustained irreversible brain damage because of medical errors that took place during his birth at Broward General Medical Center.

On January 10, 2000, when Denise was still pregnant with Darian, her doctor noticed during a routine checkup that Denise’s heart rate was beating unusually fast. She was admitted to the hospital and began pre-term labor three days later. Medical staff managed to stabilize Denise and the baby, but the next day, at around 2:40AM, their condition grew worse.

The Brown’s lawsuit alleges that nurses were negligent because they waited two hours before calling Denise’s doctor. The doctors, who did not deliver Darian until 7am that morning, are accused of failing to delivery the baby in a timely manner.

As a result of his birth injuries, Darian is profoundly mentally impaired, is unable to make decisions, cannot walk or feed himself, and will require lifelong specialized care. The $35 million jury award will allow his parents, Denise and David Brown, to hire 24-hour care for Darian and buy a van with a wheelchair lift. To support Darian and their other three young children, David has had to work the night shift, so Denise could work during the daytime.

Birthing Malpractice
Medical errors that occur prior to, during, or after delivery can cause serious and permanent injuries to a baby. Birth injuries can be caused by a number of medical malpractice errors, such as failure to diagnose/treat the mother’s high blood pressure, failure to deliver the baby in a timely manner, failure to perform an emergency C-section, errors involving forceps delivery or vacuum extraction, and errors that prevent a baby from getting enough oxygen.

Please contact our South Florida medical malpractice law firm to discuss your case.

Lauderhill family with brain-damaged son wins $35 million malpractice verdict, Sun-Sentinel.com, June 19, 2008
Medical Malpractice & Childbirth, Wrongdiagnosis.com

Related Web Resources:

Birth Injuries

Broward Health
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Florida Claims Bill Grants 9-Year-old Girl $18.2 Million for Department of Children and Families Error that Led To Her Traumatic Brain Injury

May 27, 2008 | by David J. Halberg, Esq.

9-Year-Old Florida resident Marissa Amora will receive $18.2 million over the next 11 years for her serious personal injuries caused in part by Florida’s Department of Children and Families’s negligence.

A Florida jury had awarded Amora’s family over $26 million, but Florida lawmakers must approve court-ordered awards over $200,000. Earlier this month, Florida Governor Charlie Crist signed the claims bill awarding Amora the 18.2 million. Marissa will receive $2.9 million this year, and her family will continue to receive additional payments over the following years until she receives the full amount.

The jury ruled that the DCF was 75% liable for Marissa’s catastrophic traumatic brain injuries and abdominal injuries. Marissa had been admitted for one month to Miami Children’s Hospital in 2000. Upon her release, the DCF decided to return Marissa to her biological mother even though several hospital social workers reported that they suspected that Marissa was an abuse victim.

Marissa, who was 2-years-old at the time, was readmitted to the hospital several weeks later with broken bones and a traumatic brain injury. Doctors believe that Marrissa was swung by her legs and smashed onto the floor or the wall.

Now, Marissa can only eat with a feeding tube, is unable to walk, and has the developmental skills of a 3-year-old. The compensation is intended to provide for her ongoing medical care for the rest of her life.

Please contact our South Florida personal injury law firm if you or someone you love was seriously injured because of another party’s negligence or carelessness. You may be entitled to financial recovery for medical costs, ongoing medical care, mental and emotional trauma, and other associated losses.

Abused Florida 9-year-old to receive millions for DCF mistake, News-Press.com, May 6, 2008
Crist signs bill giving Lake Worth abuse victim Marissa Amora $18.2 million, PalmBeachPost.com, May 6, 2008

Related Web Resource:

Florida Department of Children and Families
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Port St. Lucie, Florida Man Sues Jensen Beach McDonald’s For Premises Liability-Related Shooting That Resulted in Traumatic Brain Injury

May 22, 2008 | by David J. Halberg, Esq.

John Mario, a Port St. Lucie, Florida man who suffered a traumatic brain injury after being shot in the head during a robbery in the parking lot of a McDonald’s restaurant in Jensen Beach, is suing the fast food company for personal injury. He filed his lawsuit last week in Marion County Circuit Court.

Mario alleges that McDonald’s failed to provide adequate security to restaurant patrons. He was eating in his truck in the parking lot on January 6, 2006 when Quentin Alexander Bradley, 19, tried to rob him. The Fort Pierce resident was armed.

Police reports indicate that the two men struggled and the gun went off. Mario sustained a serious traumatic brain injury. He can no longer work and his motor and speech skills are impaired.

Mario and his wife are demanding damages because they allege that McDonalds knew that their restaurant was located in a high crime area and should have done more to ensure that patrons were protected while on the premise.

Bradley was convicted to life in prison after pleading no contest to attempted murder, and burglary, and robbery charges.

Premises Liability Accidents
Property owners and managers in Florida are legally obligated to make sure that patrons, visitors, residents, and workers are safe from harm. Failure to exercise this duty of care and eliminate any potentially hazardous conditions can lead to serious injuries and wrongful death.

Common kinds of premises liability accidents include, slip and fall accidents (a hazardous condition on the property causes a victim to slip/trip and fall and get seriously hurt), inadequate security (failure to implement the proper safety measures to prevent crimes from occurring to victims), and falling merchandise (failure to secure objects, furniture, inventory, and other items so that people aren’t injured by falling objects).

If you or someone you love was seriously injured in an accident in Port St. Lucie or any other city in South Florida that was caused by another party’s negligence or carelessness, contact one of our South Florida personal injury attorneys in Miami, West Palm Beach, and Pt. St. Lucie, Florida.

Shooting victim sues Jensen Beach McDonald’s; seeks trial, TCPalm.com, May 14, 2008

Related Web Resources:

Jensen Beach man who aided prosecutors gets harsher sentence than robbery accomplice

Traumatic Brain Injuries, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke Continue reading