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$2,000,000 Jury Verdict in Negligence Suit in Hospital for Failure to Protect
Hospital for treatment of superficial hear wounds, emergency room personnel
instructed the officer to remove the arrestee's handcuffs because he would
be considered a patient and not a prisoner.
As they were walking down a hospital hallway, the officer momentarily
tripped over a laundry basket. The arrestee pounced on the officer,
grabbing his gun from the holster. The arrestee then shot the officer once
in the chest. The bullet fractured a rib and ricocheted through many of his
internal organs. A good Samaritan on crutches came top the officer's aid.
The arrestee shot him once in the chest. The Samaritan crawled into a room,
but the arrestee followed him, shooting him again. Before he died, the
Samaritan exclaimed dismay over the future of his wife and 6 children.
The officer and Samaritan's estate brought suit, alleging the hospital was
negligent for maintaining and enforcing a policy of preventing officers
from utilizing handcuffs on prisoners brought to the hospital when it did
not contain a prison ward.
The officer spent 3 months in intensive care, 8 surgical interventions,
and will be permanently unable to walk quickly, lift objects, and suffered
permanent respiratory problems. The jury awarded him $1,500,000. The
Samaritan's estate was awarded $500,000 for conscious pain and suffering.
Verdict rendered June 1984. See: Walker v. St. Vincent's Hospital, New York
Supreme Court, New York County, Index No 22478/77.
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Related legal case
Walker v. St. Vincents Hospital, New York Supreme
Year | 1984 |
---|---|
Cite | New York County, Index No 22478/77 |
Level | State Trial Court |
Conclusion | Jury Verdict |
Attorney Fees | 0 |
Damages | 2,000,000.00 |
Injunction Status | N/A |