A Queens nursing home settled a lawsuit brought by the Estate of man who was beaten to death by his roommate who was convicted of Manslaughter with the leg of a wheelchair. Unfortunately, the facts are disturbing: Our client, a resident of the nursing home, was viciously bludgeoned to death without any intervention from the staff of the nursing home! Upon retention by the Estate to pursue a claim of negligence, Personal Injury Attorney Todd Greenberg was told by the attorney for the nursing home that the nursing home was not liable, that it was the independent and murderous acts of the roommate that caused our client’s death and that the case would be dismissed prior to trial. Instead, after five (5) years of litigation, that same attorney on the eve of Jury Selection entered into a mutually satisfactory settlement with Mr. Greenberg on behalf of the Estate, the terms of which are subject to a non-disclosure agreement. Why? During the litigation, Mr. Greenberg filed a Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) request with the District Attorney’s Office of Queens County, The New York City Police Department and the New York State Department of Health (NYSDH), and even brought an Article 78 proceeding against the NYSDH in Albany, to obtain all records and videotapes. NYSDH turned over a video, obtained during its investigation, which showed the killer roommate banging the footrest of the wheelchair on a hallway wall for two (2) minutes before going into his room and committing murder. The video also showed employees of the nursing home, in whose care our client was placed, walking by and ignoring his aggression! The nursing home was negligent in failing to intervene which, Mr. Greenberg argued, allowed the murderer to enter the room. This death could have been avoided! Our client’s pain and suffering action survived his death and his Estate received a mutually satisfactory settlement which the family hopes will act as a deterrent to such negligent conduct by nursing homes.
If you or a love one is injured through the negligence of others call Addabbo and Greenberg and speak to Mr. Dominic Addabbo or Mr. Todd Greenberg at 718-268-0400 or contact us through www.addabboandgreenberg.com.
