Man Mistakenly Declared Dead; Family Sues

Family Of N.C. Man Hit By Car And Wrongly Declared Dead Sues Medical Officials

(AP)  The family of a man who was hit by a car and mistakenly declared dead has sued over the mistake, claiming it led to injuries from which he might not recover.

Larry Green was walking across a highway in 2005 when he was hit by a car. He was put into a body bag and sent to the morgue, and the medical examiner did not notice Green was still alive until roughly 2½ hours after the accident.

Green, who now lives in a nursing home, was hospitalized for two months with a severe head injury, broken leg and other injuries. He began some limited speaking five months after the accident.

In the lawsuit filed this month, the familiy claims medical officials inadequately checked his vital signs after the accident. It also alleges the medical examiner disregarded signs that Green was alive.

The examiner, J.B. Perdue, said it was not his job to determine whether Green was dead or alive.

"The medical examiner is called after death," Perdue said. "Someone else pronounced his death, and the medical examiner is called to investigate the cause and manner of that death. He does not pronounce people dead."

William Hill, an attorney representing Franklin County, did not return calls seeking comment.

[rfcnj68]

Ooooooooops sorry buddy for giving you the cold shoulder.

[Krazcarl]

Sounds like a cash game!!

[vict42]

Give the man a check, do not stop at go.

[mike71067]

"Family Of N.C. Man Hit By Car And Wrongly Declared Dead Sues Medical Officials"

Uh, shouldn''t they be thankful he''s alive, and be not trying to squeeze cash out of this incident?

[bobnjersey]

["The medical examiner is called after death," Perdue said. "Someone else pronounced his death, and the medical examiner is called to investigate the cause and manner of that death. He does not pronounce people dead." ]

it really should be everyone''s responsibility to know when they''re dead ... thereby leaving nothing to chance.

[toolmangler-2009]

Uh, shouldn''''t they be thankful he''''s alive, and be not trying to squeeze cash out of this incident?
Posted by mike71067 at 04:26 PM : Dec 28, 2007


They are suing because if he had been treated from the first as though he were alive, He might not be brain damaged now.

[gaye5]

Yep, this family sure loves this man, he is in a nursing home???? how old is this man...

[kphx]

That''s absurd on part of the initial medical crew that declared him dead, put him in a body bag and let the coroner / medical examiner find out, he is still alive. The family has every right to sue.

[jetranger7]

Geeeshhh- isn''t anybody educated ?? Don''t these very people have to have some sort of College degree to get these jobs ?? Again, it makes you wonder just what their teaching em'' in these over glorified colleges these days, obviously its not common sense, but, how to lie or excuse yourself out of being careless and making mistakes,, geshhhhh !!!! so much for professional accountability !!!

[gaye5]

IF this family is genuine then it will cost them money to keep him going, money that they might not have had to spend if he hadn''t been hit and he might not have had this brain damage if he had of been attended to properly straight off, but one has to ask questions as to why was he crossing the road when a car was coming??? was he drunk??? was he to blame for his accident???
And what about the poor person who hit him, surely he would feel like suing this man for walking out in from of him and causing a life time of mental horror. Imagine hitting someone, it would cause you nightmares for life, let alone being told that you had killed him and the relief later to find out that you hadn''t but that now he had caused brain damage.

[krenz4]

gaye5 you write like you have some kind of damage! Anywsay, they have every right to sue. It costs hundreds of thousands of dollars for care when someone has sustained this kind of damage. Had they pronounced him correctly, he may have survived with little or no damage.

[jp48481]

YET ANOTHER CASE OF "UNITED SUING", NO MORE UNITED STATES.
THIS WAS A HORRIBLE MISTAKE, BUT THE MAN IS ALIVE, ISN''T THAT THE MOST IMPORTANT THING. HAVE WE LOST ALL OF OUR COMPASSION AND SINCE OF HUMANITY... NEXT THING YOU KNOW BURGLARS WILL SUING THE VICTIMS THEY ROB! OH YEAH, THEY ALREADY HAVE...

[blancadebree]

In a related story, Fred Thompson''s family plans to sue the Associated Press for making him look like death warmed over.

http://blancadebree.blogspot.com

[michellem99-2009]

Gaye5..I can''t answer for him..People drive crazy here. They yak on the cell. They run the walk signal. They drink drive...They won''t pay atten to proper driving and the rules of the road. Every state in America has a white cane law as that covers me and other blind persons. That should have been treated right..With the learning today they should known that Person was not dead. Lass. Gaye5 is a learnt lady abraod..

[jn122736]

Lack of Oxygen can cause severe brain damage. If he was in a zipped up body bag for 2 1/2 hours, it may well have added to, or even caused, much of his problem.

[likeitis5050]

Please...someone just offer to pay the family''s nursing home bills...that''s all that''s needed here. So what if he was brain damaged from the second he was hit, or that he had no business walking across a highway...this is America and in America, no one is accountable for their own stupidity. Especially when they end up being 90% vegetable as a result. Just pay the friggin family the money they need to keep him alive in the nursing home and call it a day. God forbid any judge declare a mistrial and lay the burden back on the man. In 3 months of being a ward of the state or pushed from welfare home to welfare home, he''ll dead anyway, but the family is listening to a slick lawyer who has assured them they can be rich from this guy''s stupidity if they trust him. Lawyers don''t lie.

[downsteamjim]

John Edwards plans to end global terrorism by sueing Al Quead.

[downsteamjim]

John Edwards plans to end global terrorism by sueing Al Quead.

[rhs648]

["The medical examiner is called after death," Perdue said. "Someone else pronounced his death, and the medical examiner is called to investigate the cause and manner of that death. He does not pronounce people dead." ]

it really should be everyone''''s responsibility to know when they''''re dead ... thereby leaving nothing to chance.

Do any of us know how medical examiners work. Suppose normal procedure is to bring a body to the morgue and someone then schedules an autopsy for later in the day or for the next day. It seems logical that a body could be "on ice" for hours or even days before the medical examiner actually sees a body. Suppose there were five other autopsies scheduled before this one. It would be helful to understand what happens before condemning the medical examiner for not discovering that this person was still alive.

[mdell27]

So in other words, the medical examiner just ASSUMES the person is dead.

Just another ''its not my fault'' person.

[rhs648]

So in other words, the medical examiner just ASSUMES the person is dead.

Just another ''''its not my fault'''' person.

Posted by mdell27

The first part of your statement is correct. The medical examiner determines the cause of death. Other people determine if a person is dead. This has nothing to do with "Just another ''its not my fault'' person." It has everything to do with different people doing their jobs. If on the other hand, it was the medical examiner''s responsibilty to check for death as soon as a body is brought in, I would be in full asgreement with you. We don''t live in a perfect world.

[magoo2u1]

So , ok , let me understand: If the victim sues he''s a dirt bag for not taking responsiblity.
If the people that pronounced a live man dead get sued, the victim is a dirtbag for demanding they take responsibility.
Now it all makes sense!!
Have you bone heads ever considered that shooting the guy who''s dog bit your kid is illegal so you take the scumbag to court to get JUSTICE? We have a whole system designed so we don''t have to handle it ourselves but you think the people that use it are wrong.
without the system we would have annarchy and lots of "family feuds".

[courtin-2009]

I''m glad the man is alive and hope the man and his family can deal with this. I don''t have any idea what it would be like to be alive and be treated as if dead. I''m glad the coroner didn''t need to do an immediate autopsy.

[bradshaw53]

I can''t imagine how it felt to be ALIVE in a body bag!! The person that found he was actually ALIVE must have been quite shocked. Who would you call first?

[aznyron-2009]

Please...someone just offer to pay the family''''s nursing home bills...that''''s all that''''s needed here. So what if he was brain damaged from the second he was hit, or that he had no business walking across a highway...this is America and in America, no one is accountable for their own stupidity. Especially when they end up being 90% vegetable as a result. Just pay the friggin family the money they need to keep him alive in the nursing home and call it a day. God forbid any judge declare a mistrial and lay the burden back on the man. In 3 months of being a ward of the state or pushed from welfare home to welfare home, he''''ll dead anyway, but the family is listening to a slick lawyer who has assured them they can be rich from this guy''''s stupidity if they trust him. Lawyers don''''t lie.
----------------------------------------------------
sorry some one has to pay for damages and pain &
suffering to the family this looks to me like a winning case with loads of money being awarded to the plantiffs thank GOD for the legal system that protects the poor & middle class

[rowdytexan2]

Good Lord! Isn''t the funeral home even required to make sure people are dead? It looks like the medical examiner, even out of curiousity would check just to make sure! A justice of the peace or officer of the law is not medically trained.

My BP is so low I''ve gone into the ER talking and they could barely find a pulse. You''d think they''d check these things out at every stop.

Yep, what an opportunity for some ambulance chaser! Not to politicize this, but John Edwards would leap on this like a chicken on a june bug.

[glaswolf]

Apparently an injured body can appear dead and revive without any assistance. You don''t necessarily die because your vital signs cease for a few minutes, they can start up again. It''s just that one normally does ... no one is to blame for those random events when one is comatose and circulation stops for lack of heart beats, systems relax and the iris loses tension ... the family should be happy the body was not drained of blood.

[likeitis5050]

sorry some one has to pay for damages and pain &
suffering to the family this looks to me like a winning case with loads of money being awarded to the plantiffs thank GOD for the legal system that protects the poor & middle class
-----

Posted by aznyron

I might agree, except that the lawyers end up with as much, or more, or their compensation...shouldn''t they be looking out for the poor and middle class, like all the others who have empathy in our society? Everyone chomps down on those with insurance or money, and the more money one goes after, the higher the prices for the lawyer. Seems at odds with the bleeding heart philosophy for the poor and middle class. All the family really needs is to have bills paid to take care of the guy. Where is it written they have to make millions because they were stunned by a false declaration. Worse things happen everyday to people in all kinds of tragedies and accidents and nothing is done to help all the them. No. A lawyer saw $$$$ signs and suddenly it''s pain and suffering and punitive damages...punitive? Please. This isn''t about correcting a system...it''s about $$$$$$ for the lawyers.

[Krazcarl]

ahhh let''s make a buck it''s the american way.

[tmn]

Ah, I sort of think he''s got a pretty good case here...

[slim1h2o]

Ah, I sort of think he''''s got a pretty good case here...

Posted by tmn123 at 12:37 PM : Dec 29, 2007

*** straight he does! May he/they get all of the money,,and little to the lawyers.Of coures they will need to get paid.

[tcoleman12]

This story sort of reminds me of John Edwards campaign. There are no vital signs, no real signs of life, but he just won''t let it die...

[offtheback]

Jeez, just like shopping at Macy''s "that''s not my department."

[adasher1]

I think its proof of a god%u2026.someone prayed hard enough and the dead rose. And all you Christians told me that only ONE could rise from the dead. He IS the Messiah%u2026%u2026.ALL HAIL THE MESSIAH. What is his name%u2026I need to make sure I get a front row seat at the church that he needs to start.

[carolrhill]

I did not think that after any accidents that automatically put the person or persons in a body bag.
I thought that they at the very least took them to a hospital and that is where they pronouce a person dead. They seem to put this poor man in a body bag rather quickly.
I don''t know who I would sue first but I would sue not so much for the money because no amount of money would bring back my loved one but just to make sure that never happens again.
What worries me there were some many people who saw this man and none of them took a double take to make sure that he had gone to other side of the curtain or not that is what worries me.
MAY GOD BLESS THE ENTIRE FAMILY THROUGH THIS VERY HARD TIME NOW AND FOREVER AS I AM SURE HE WILL!!!

[andor3]

"no one is to blame"

someone declared him dead when he was alive. that person is in a position of authority and is supposed to be qualified to determine death. they are very much to blame. this could have led to a man''s death--essentially their negligence almost killed him and may have led to long term injuries.

even more you have to wonder if this is an isolated incident--this will cause emotional pain and suffering for many families who had someone declared dead in similar circumstances. Now they will have lingering doubts.

They are all entitled to compensation, seeing the people responsible punished. The lawsuit(s) also perform a service if they make people more diligent in the future.

[knyghtwolf]

If he is married, he is released from his marital contract because it clearly states a man and a woman are married until death do you part, if I were him and married, and wanted out of the marriage, here is his opportunity, because if he stays with her, he is living in sin and needs to get re-married. Gotta love those christian laws....LOLOLOL

[gaye5]

krenz4 you wrote, you write like you have some kind of damage!
Didn''t you read what I have written, I wont lower myself to making a nasty comment back to you like, can''t you read...
I said that...IF this family is genuine, then it will cost them money to keep him going, money that they might not have had to spend if he hadn''t been hit and he might not have had this brain damage if he had of been attended to properly straight off, but questions have to be asked first...and my heart goes out to the man who hit him..
Of course he would need money to keep him going, and as far as that is concerned I would sue also to help me, but if he was drunk or whatever then he has no right to sue others for his stupidity..
JP48481, it is no good being alive if you are badly mentally effected..and yes you are right, here in Australia crims have sued for being hurt while doing their dirty deed, and what is more incredible is that the Judges allow it and give them the money they have asked for instead of putting them away.

[gaye5]

MichelleM99 great to hear from you, Happy new year and I hope it is a better one for you this year.. Thanks for your comments also..
There is no need for people to put nasty comments on here. Whether it be right or wrong everyone is just voicing their opinion, and if misunderstood it is always wise to ask what the other person means before making a fool of themselves, this way we can all learn from each other, I love to hear the opinions of others.. Nasty words get us no where.

And Michelle from what I see you write, you can also be very proud of yourself, not only for your compassion for others but for your common sense in so many things..

[andor3]

"but one has to ask questions as to why was he crossing the road when a car was coming?"

No one does not. It not relevant. The answer would not help to explain the mistake or excuse the wrong that was done. The lawsuit would be just the same no matter what the answer might be.

[zootallures2]

It is rather difficult to tell if anyone is brain dead these days.

[rohink-2009]

If he was declared dead there must have been severe injuries. Who is to say that his disabilities are not the result of the accident.

[dsr57]

Everyone is always loking to get paid for nothing

[andor3]

"Everyone is always loking to get paid for nothing"

must be talking about the person who was supposed to decide if this guy was alive or not. Didn''t do the job, almost killed a guy, but hey why should anyone get upset. Just collecting a pycheck like everyone else. Heck, probably happens every day.

[Krazcarl]

Don''t you love americia where your siblings can make an extra buck when you die...

[gea_amicus]

"but if he was drunk or whatever then he has no right to sue others for his stupidity.."

I do agree with the above statement. No matter if he was drunk when the accident took place, if the injuries are a result of negligent care after the accident, his family has every right to ask the court for relief.

[keiler1]

If he is an elder and can''t walk that fast and then someone says hes dead when he isn''t, don''t you think that would cause trama to the family. I think the family has all rights to sue because some doctors are getting away with stuff everyday. This should give them a wake up call to pay more attention even when they are busy.