Florida Nursing Home Negligence Lawsuit Results in $200M Verdict

|
Staff Writers

Add Your Comments

A Florida jury has awarded $200 million to the family of a 92-year-old woman who was trapped for an hour at the bottom of a nursing home stairwell before dying. 

The nursing home negligence lawsuit was filed by the family of Elvira Nunziata against Pinellas Park Care and Rehabilitation Center and Trans Health Management Inc., which ran the facility.

According to the complaint, Nunziata, who was wheelchair bound and suffered from dementia, fell down the stairwell in her chair in October 2004.

Do You Know about…

Spinal Cord Stimulator lawsuits

Spinal cord stimulator lawsuits are being investigated for individuals who suffered unnecessary shocks, burns or other problems, often resulting in the need for additional surgery to remove the SCS.

Learn More
SEE IF YOU QUALIFY FOR COMPENSATION
Spinal-Cord-Stimulation-Lawsuit
Spinal-Cord-Stimulation-Lawsuit

Do You Know About…

Spinal Cord Stimulator lawsuits

Spinal cord stimulator lawsuits are being investigated for individuals who suffered unnecessary shocks, burns or other problems, often resulting in the need for additional surgery to remove the SCS.

Learn More
SEE IF YOU QUALIFY FOR COMPENSATION

The lawsuit alleges that as a result of neglect by the nursing home, no one noticed that Nunziata had gone missing for an hour before she was found at the bottom of the stairwell, despite alarms on her clothing and on the emergency door. She was still strapped into her wheelchair when she was found. Paramedics were called but she died shortly after they arrived on the scene.

The Pinellas County jury deliberated for less than an hour before awarding Nunziata’s son and estate $60 million in compensatory damages and $140 million in punitive damages. The verdict is one of the largest nursing home negligence lawsuit awards, if not the largest, in Florida history.

Nunziata had wandered away from a group of residents. She was known to wander and had previously suffered falls and other injuries. Former workers at the nursing home testified that the facility suffered from understaffing at the time of the accident.

Trans Health Management Inc. no longer manages the facility. It is unclear whether the company intends to appeal the verdict.

Tags: Florida, Nursing Home Fall, Nursing Home Neglect, Wrongful Death
Image Credit: |

More Lawsuit Stories

2 Comments

Denise
I had to threaten them to send her to the emergency room. Then when she gets to the emergency her records don’t go with her. The emergency room doesn’t know any of history and they do a procedure on her that shouldn’t have ever been done. Then with all this the Health Care Facility didn’t know my mother in law had left the facility, they didn’t she was passed away. I just really upset with the Health Care Facility and the Hospital now.
MaryAnn
I am truly glad the family was compensated but its sad to see how many unknown cases of this matter goes on daily and the ones to suffer are our elderly parents that sometimes are like a child that can not complain in time before they pass. May Nunziata rest in peace.

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Share Your Comments

This field is hidden when viewing the form
I authorize the above comments be posted on this page
Post Comment
Weekly Digest Opt-In

Want your comments reviewed by a lawyer?

To have an attorney review your comments and contact you about a potential case, provide your contact information below. This will not be published.

NOTE: Providing information for review by an attorney does not form an attorney-client relationship.

MORE TOP STORIES

Depo-Provera Meningioma Side Effects Left Woman With Debilitating Migraines, Lawsuit Claims
A Depo-Provera meningioma lawsuit indicates that a woman suffered permanent and debilitating injuries after needing to have a brain tumor surgically removed.
Dupixent Injection Lawsuit Alleges Manufacturer Failed to Warn About T-Cell Lymphoma Cancer Side Effects
Regeneron and Sanofi-Aventis face a Dupixent injection lawsuit from a Louisiana woman who says the companies knew about the drug’s risks but downplayed them to doctors and patients.
MORE ABOUT: DUPIXENT LAWSUIT
Port Catheter Thrombosis Lawsuit Claims Defective AngioDynamics Xcela Device Caused Thrombosis
A Nevada woman has filed a lawsuit alleging defects in AngioDynamics’ port catheters caused her Xcela device to trigger a thrombosis in her right internal jugular vein.