Incomplete quadriplegia sustained by a Jesse White Tumblers acrobat on a movie set in Vernon Hills when an improperly staged scene caused him to make in-air contact with another performer and land on his neck.

L.T. v. Cook County Stroger Hospital

On May 10, 2013, Plaintiff’s Decedent (F-55) presented to Cook County Stroger Hospital for the purposes of undergoing a pacemaker insertion surgery due to her chronic cardiac condition. Post-surgical bleeding was encountered and the Plaintiff’s Decedent remained an inpatient through June 2, 2013, at which point she was discharged home. She re-presented four days later complaining of shortness of breath. She suffered an arrest the following morning and died as a result of pneumonia and hypovolemic shock. Plaintiff contended that a surgical evacuation and/or blood transfusions should have been undertaken upon Decedent’s re-presentation to Stroger hospital, prior to her arrest. The Decedent is survived by her husband and four adult children.

A. v. Advocate Health and Hospitals corporation, etc., et al.

This case involves a minor Plaintiff who fell at school in gym class and struck the back of his head on a tile floor. A. was transported from school to Olympia Fields Hospital and transferred within a few hours to Advocate Hope Children’s Hospital to receive pediatric intensive care unit monitoring and management. While at Advocate from 2:45 p.m. on December 16, 1999 until his death at 9:26 a.m. on December 18, 1999, A. did not receive a CT scan until 10:15 p.m. on December 17th. The CT scan performed at 10:15 p.m. was ordered to be done in the a.m. on the 17th. Plaintiffs alleged that there was a failure to obtain a CT scan as ordered. After obtaining the image in the late evening of December 17th, no radiologist or other physician interpreted that scan until after A. suffered a respiratory arrest at 4:30 in the morning on December 18, 1999. The scan taken in the evening of December 17th revealed a fracture of his skull in the occipital bone, a right frontal lobe hematoma and brain swelling. A. suffered an arrest on the December 18th as a result of increasing intracranial pressure and brain herniation.

(2024 – Cook County)

(2024) Medical Malpractice: 57-year-old male presented to a Chicago area hospital for an elective urologic procedure. Hours after the procedure, a rapid respiratory response was called. Plaintiff alleged a failure to work-up, diagnose, and treat pulmonary embolism by increasing heparin therapy from prophylactic to therapeutic dosing. After a brief stay in the ICU, a few hospital days were spent on the general medical floor where a Code occurred, however, death was pronounced. An autopsy revealed a saddle pulmonary embolus and a clot in one lung lobe. The decedent is survived by his wife and three children.

E.K., As Mother and Next Friend of E.M., her minor daughter v. A Local Pediatric Hospital

(2020) Medical Malpractice: Three-year-old girl presented to a local pediatric hospital to undergo surgery for the removal of what was believed to be a cholesteatoma which was affecting left-sided hearing (conductive hearing). The next day she underwent a second surgery to repair physician-caused injury to facial nerve. The ENT in charge of the surgery failed to recognize that the mass was not a cholesteatoma and proceeded to explore the area causing the facial nerve damage. As a consequence, the minor now will need a Baha hearing aid affixed to her skull and has lost the real opportunity to hear on the affected side. She also has permanent facial paralysis resulting in asymmetry of her face, eyes, eyebrow, and smile.

C. v. Rush Presbyterian – St. Luke’s Medical Center, et al.

C. underwent knee surgery on March 8, 2002. After the surgery he was given full strength Fentanyl/Bupivacaine and Cloridine by epidural for pain. He remained uncomfortable so the epidural was pulled and he was started on Morphine. Thereafter the epidural position was reconfirmed and he was restarted on Fentanyl/Bupivacaine and Cloridine as well as the Morphine. At approximately 1:00 a.m. the attending physician noted the patient was comfortable, sleeping but easily arousable. At 4:00 a.m., a nurse, while administering antibiotics, noted that Plaintiff was pale and unresponsive with his pulse rate dropping from 20 to 0. He was in asystole and a Code was called and CPR commenced.

Plaintiff contends that the pain medicines administered were respiratory depressants which led to a respiratory arrest and hypoxic anoxic brain damage. Under the circumstances an apnea monitor and oximeter were required by the standard of care to prevent a respiratory arrest. This brain damage ultimately led to his death six days later, on March 14, 2002.

M. v. S&Z Development Co., et al.

A 29-year old carpenter, fell through a skylight hole 38-feet to his death while erecting a skylight on a penthouse roof at the Eugenie Terrace Development. This was the largest verdict for a wrongful death of a tradesman in Illinois. It is also the largest wrongful death verdict under the Structural Work Act in Illinois history. The decedent left a wife and a 5-year old son.

P. v. WGN

WGN camera man ran red light and injured previously disabled Vietnam veteran.

P. v. WGN Broadcasting Company

(1999) Auto Accident. P. was a 50 year old passenger in a vehicle struck by a WGN satellite antenna van which ran a red light. P. suffered chest trauma and while undergoing an angiogram procedure, he suffered a stroke and cardiac arrest. He was left with partial paralysis on the left side of his body.

F.S. v. F.C. (2018)

Joseph Power and James Power secured a $6,000,000.00 on behalf of their client after a local hospital failed to diagnosis Cauda Equina Syndrome over the course of a three-day hospital stay. F.S. was brought to the hospital via ambulance and was seen by neurologist F.C. who failed to recognize and diagnosed F.S.’s CES. As a result of this failure, compression on F.S.’s spine was not relieved until after permanent nerve damage had occurred. As a result, F.S. now has trouble walking without an assistive device and has issues with incontinence.