Buelna v. State of Arizona, University of Arizona, Tsau, M.D., University Physicians, et al.

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Forty-nine year old woman presents to the emergency room at Northwest Medical Center on a Wednesday with chest pain. She is diagnosed with severe coronary artery occlusions and triple vessel disease, requiring immediate quadruple coronary artery bypass surgery. Surgery was not performed until five days later. Following a series of mistakes by various doctors and nurses, including an undiagnosed post-surgical bleed, the woman was rushed for a second emergent surgery. During the surgery, the woman’s heart stopped for a substantial period of time causing brain death and, 20 days later, her untimely death.

Case settled prior to trial with all parties with a covenant not to disclose the terms of the settlements.

Lowe v. Levine, M.D.

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Minor child’s alleged family practitioner was negligent during the delivery of their son when she failed to properly and timely resuscitate him at birth. The child was without oxygen for over four minutes after delivery, causing brain damage. (The case against the hospital was settled before the trial).

Farinksky v. Bernstein M.D., Gettle, M.D., and Carondelet Health Network

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Neurosurgeon Ronald Bernstein, M.D., performed a right occipital craniotomy to remove a tumor (acoustic neuroma). With little brain surgery experience, the surgeon removed portions of healthy brain tissue (mostly cerebellar) instead of removing the tumor. The patient was left in a state of quadriplegia and died two months later.

Settlements were obtained with all three defendants, with covenants not to disclose the terms of the settlement agreements.

Zopfi v. Williams and Estate of Sherow

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Motorists Williams and Sherow were traveling side-by-side 80 to 90 miles per hour in area where a two-lane road merged into a single lane. The Williams vehicle made contact with the Sherow vehicle which then spun out of control and rolled, crashing into Plaintiff’s vehicle, which had been going in the opposite direction. Plaintiff had a mild concussion and a foot injury requiring six surgeries.

Johnson v. Espinoza and Crunk

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Espinoza and Crunk, both of whom were State corrections officers, were en route late at night to Laughlin, Nevada, on a gambling trip. The van they were in overheated and they stopped in the I-10 emergency lane. Defendant Espinoza, a private security guard, passed their vehicle, pulled over some distance down the freeway and backed his vehicle at a rate of 27 to 30 m.p.h. in the direction of the stranded motorists. When the Defendant was approximately 60 feet away he braked, causing his vehicle to slide and rotate, kicking up dirt and gravel in the direction of Mr. Johnson and Mr. Crunk. Although the Defendant was able to stop his vehicle 13 feet from where Mr. Johnson had been standing, Mr. Johnson fled from in front of the van onto the freeway and was struck and killed by a passing vehicle.

Northcutt v. McLeod

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College student failed to stop at a stop sign, crossing four lanes of traffic and colliding with 53-year-old emergency room physician, and causing physician’s vehicle to roll over. The doctor suffered a fractured right foot and injury to the cervical spine, requiring an anterior cervical diskectomy and fusion.

Case was settled for $1,200,000 one month before trial.