Jefferson Airplane Co-Founder Balin: Botched Surgery Ruined Career
NEW YORK (AP) — Co-founding member of Jefferson Airplane Marty Balin is accusing a New York City hospital of destroying his musical career with a botched tracheotomy.
A lawsuit filed by Balin against Mount Sinai Beth Israel hospital says the singer and guitarist lost part of his tongue and has a paralyzed vocal cord because of the procedure done after he was hospitalized for emergency heart surgery in 2016.
The 77-year-old Balin helped form Jefferson Airplane in San Francisco in the mid-1960s. The band's signature hits include "Somebody to Love" and "White Rabbit."
Lawyers for Balin sued Thursday in federal court in Manhattan. The suit seeks unspecified damages.
There was no immediate response on Friday to a message seeking comment from hospital officials.
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