$1.75 Million Settlement for Infant Wrongful Death

The family of a three-year old boy accepted a settlement regarding the death of their son during a dental procedure. The child, who was having multiple quadrant work performed on his baby teeth, was restrained in a papoose by the dentist because he was uncooperative. Toward the end of the procedure it was noticed that he was no longer breathing and despite attempts at resuscitation, he could not be revived. 911 was activated and the child transported to a local hospital, where he was considered ‘brain dead’ as a result of anoxic encephalopathy (or brain damage from lack of oxygen). As he had no hope for recovery, life support was discontinued the following day.

The parents sued, claiming that the child should not have been restrained in a papoose, as other less harmful means of calming him down were available. Further, it was claimed that the child’s respirations were not monitored during the procedure, as it was not noticed until the very end, when the dental work was completed, that he was not breathing. Blume Forte partner Michael B. Zerres obtained the recovery on behalf of the infant’s family.