Craig P. Mannarino

An unarmed 23-year-old African American man was shot and killed by an off-duty Chicago Police officer at a CTA train station. The officer was trying to break up a fist fight that did not involve the decedent. The officer admitted in his deposition that the shooting was not justified and the case proceeded to trial on damages only after the City of Chicago admitted its liability.

A 52-year-old construction laborer was working at the bottom of a 12-foot deep trench installing storm pipes when the trench walls collapsed, burying him beneath a pile of dirt and rock. The trench was not protected from collapse by some form of support system (shoring or trench box). Bovis Lend Lease, the construction manager on the site, was aware that the trench was not protected but allowed the work to continue. The laborer suffered permanent, disabling injuries resulting in chronic pain and an inability to work in any capacity.

A 69-year-old woman was seen by her internist on several occasions over a three-month span. During each visit, the patient’s blood pressure was significantly elevated. However, the internist did not diagnose hypertension and did not prescribe any medications to lower her blood pressure. Consequently, the patient suffered a massive hypertensive hemorrhagic stroke which left her permanently disabled requiring 24-hour assistance.

A 46-year-old mother of three underwent a neurosurgical procedure to treat an arteriovenous malformation in her left neck. The surgery was uneventful and the patient was doing well in the post-anesthesia care unit. However, the surgeon ordered the patient to be electively intubated to protect her airway. Almost immediately after the anesthesiologist intubated the patient, she developed cardiac arrest and could not be resuscitated. A subsequent chest x-ray showed that the endotracheal tube had been placed into the esophagus, instead of the trachea.

A 43-year-old woman developed skin lesions which were biopsied by her dermatologist. The biopsied tissue was sent to a dermatopathologist who rendered a diagnosis of keratoacanthoma (a form of skin cancer). Despite a procedure to remove the skin lesions, the patient’s condition worsened. After several months, it was discovered that the biopsy was misread, and the patient actually had a deep fungal infection. The delay in recognition and treatment of the fungal infection led to spread of the infection to the patient’s spinal column which necessitated multiple surgeries and resulted in permanent disability.

A 46-year-old man underwent surgery to repair a torn distal biceps tendon. During the course of the operation, the surgeon inadvertently transected the patient’s ulnar artery resulting in decreased blood flow to the hand. As a consequence of the arterial injury, the patient developed complex regional pain syndrome and a permanent injury to the median nerve which compromised the function of his hand.

A 75-year-old woman with a long history of glaucoma underwent a new procedure known as endoscopic cyclophotocoagulation (ECP) designed to reduce the amount of fluid produced in the eye which would then lower the intraocular pressure. With the final incision of the operation, the patient suffered a catastrophic hemorrhage which resulted in total and permanent blindness in the eye.

An 82-year-old man was being evaluated in the hospital for a possible cardiac condition. While a series of cardiac tests were being completed, he was placed on IV Heparin. The Heparin was continued even though the cardiac tests came back normal and despite the fact that the drug was interfering with the normal clotting of his blood. The patient developed internal bleeding from coagulopathy which resulted in multiple organ failure and death.

A 64-year-old lifelong smoker underwent a routine chest x-ray in advance of cataract surgery. The chest x-ray showed an abnormal nodule in her left lung, however, the patient’s physicians failed to timely follow-up on the abnormal finding for 14 months. Ultimately, the patient was diagnosed with Stage 3 lung cancer but the delay in diagnosis led to her death.

$10 million for child left brain damaged by air embolism

$9 million for worker catastrophically injured in an industrial accident

$8 million for child suffering cerebral palsy due to delay in delivery

$7.5 million for child suffering cerebral palsy due to delay in delivery 

$5.1 million for woman suffering catastrophic injuries following an automobile accident

$4 million for the death of a child whose mother was exposed to harmful medications during pregnancy

$4 million for clergy sexual abuse

$3.4 million for a stillborn infant who died during labor and delivery

$3 million for wrongful death of woman who received improper dialysis medications

$3 million for death of a young woman from untreated thyroid disease

$2.75 million for below the knee amputation following knee replacement surgery

$2.7 million for failure to timely diagnose breast cancer

$2.65 million for young woman who suffered foot drop following surgical treatment of scoliosis

$2.6 million for wrongful death of woman following cardiac catheterization

$2.45 million for death of a child following tracheoesophageal fistula surgery

$2.4 million for leg amputation following improper treatment of compartment syndrome

$2 million for wrongful death of woman who suffered fatal heart attack while waiting to be seen in hospital Emergency Department

$1.9 million for wrongful death of man from untreated symptomatic aortic aneurysm

$1.8 million for man receiving an overdose of radiation for treatment of prostate cancer

$1.75 million for family of child who died shortly after childbirth