Verdicts & Settlements

Airplane

ABC v. XYZ* -- $13,480,000.00 settlement. Plane crash resulting in wrongful death. Decedent traveled to the east coast to evaluate a plane for purchase. During the test flight, the plane sustained a catastrophic engine failure. Witnesses on the ground observed the plane at about 3500 to 3000 feet without any engine power. The plane circled for several minutes, without power and out of control, ultimately striking several trees prior to impacting the ground and exploding. Investigation revealed that the Torquemeter Gearshaft assembly failed, resulting in a complete loss of power to the engine. The part in question had only 25 hours of service.

ABC XYZ* -- $225,000.00 settlement of airplane accident involving runway over-run.

Medical Malpractice

Black v. Yuja, M.D., Inc. -- $2,922,275.00 (future value) jury verdict for a medical malpractice/wrongful death action involving the mis-diagnosis of ovarian cancer. Case went on appeal and was later settled for a confidential sum. In October of 1997, Glori Black found a small lump in her abdomen. To rule out cancer, she underwent an operation. Glori's surgeon removed a huge ovarian mass. He sent the tumor to the lab for diagnosis to determine how he should proceed with the surgery. Defendant, chief pathologist of the Ventura hospital, carelessly tested the mass and incorrectly diagnosed it to be dysgerminoma. About 5 months later, in 1998, Glori felt pain in her abdomen again. Within a month, an ultrasound showed another large abdominal mass. Glori was referred to Cedars-Sinai Comprehensive Cancer Center. The doctors at Cedars discovered that Glori Black did not have dysgerminoma. Instead, she had a very aggressive form of cancer which had spread throughout her abdomen. At twenty-two years old, Glori died in December 1998, about 8 months after she was correctly diagnosed. Glori was survived by her husband and son who was five years old. Binder & Associates assembled a terrific team of medical experts to testify at trial, and prevailed despite the fact that at least one of defendant's experts was supposedly world renowned from Harvard.

ABC v. XYZ* -- $2,500,000.00 settlement. Medical malpractice case involving delayed diagnosis of meningococcimia on 10 year old boy resulting in quadruple amputation. Plaintiff brought a civil action to recover for the damages caused to plaintiff by defendants' medical malpractice when plaintiff presented to an Emergency Room. The ER staff and doctor failed to provide plaintiff with essentially any care that he desperately needed to survive his bout of meningitis. Finally recognizing his critical condition, the hospital transferred plaintiff to another hospital. Despite magnificent efforts by the other hospital's pediatric intensive care unit, they could not undo the damage done by the delay plaintiff suffered from defendants' failure to care for him. Thanks to the second hospital's doctors, the then 10-year-old plaintiff survived. Had he received fluids and medicines as he should have at the previous hospital, however, he would have had a much different result. He likely would have suffered no amputations at all, or only lost fingers, or toes, or even a hand or a foot. But because of the inexcusable delay in treatment at the first hospital, the second doctors were forced to amputate all of plaintiff's arms and legs.

Chanel W. v. XYZ* -- $1,000,000.00 settlement. Medical malpractice involving hypoperfusion to 5 year old girl during cardio-thoracic surgery. Plaintiff was born with a congenital heart defect. While an infant, she underwent a surgical procedure to repair her heart which required a follow-up procedure to be performed several years later. During the follow-up procedure, plaintiff suffered hypoxia, or lack of oxygen to the brain. The defendants were the members of the surgical team during the surgery. The injury to plaintiff's brain caused her to have significant neurological problems. This case settled for policy limits.

ABC v. XYZ* -- $475,000.00 settlement in a medical malpractice case involving a pathologist who mis-diagnosed a woman's melanoma. The fifty-three, (53), year old plaintiff had a mole removed from her face. A tissue sample was sent to defendant lab for analysis and/or testing. A report was prepared and signed by defendant indicating no malignancy. Over the course of the next year, the area from which the mole was removed remained active, developing into an internal cyst and/or exterior keloid scar. Later, a second surgery was performed at the same site as the first. A tissue sample was sent to another Lab for analysis and/or testing. A report was prepared indicating massive dermal and subcutaneous nodular deposit of malignant Melanoma, present within <3 mm. of deep and peripheral margins. The first diagnosis was wrong, and the plaintiff's cancer treatment was significantly delayed. Shortly after her case settled, the plaintiff passed away - from the cancer.

ABC v. XYZ* -- $385,000.00 settlement of a medical malpractice case involving failure to give medications to a newborn with Strep B virus.

Zinderman v. Kaiser -- $225,000.00 arbitration award in a medical malpractice case involving failure to diagnose and treat diverticulitis. This arbitration lasted several days and was decided by a three (3) member panel.

ABC v. XYZ* -- $215,000.00 settlement. Medical malpractice case involving delayed delivery resulting in still-born baby.

ABC v. XYZ* - $200,000.00 settlement of medical malpractice case involving failure to diagnose and treat diverticulitis.

ABC v. XYZ* -- $187,500.00 settlement. Medical malpractice case involving delayed delivery resulting in still-born baby.

ABC v. XYZ* - $150,000.00 settlement of medical malpractice case involving delayed delivery resulting in still-born baby. This case settled before litigation was brought.

ABC v. XYZ* -- $145,000.00 settlement for a one and one-half year delayed diagnosis of breast cancer. Plaintiff, a retired employee of a school district, alleged medical malpractice against her gynecologist for 15 years and a radiologist who reviewed her mammograms. Because of a delayed diagnosis, plaintiff underwent a modified radical mastectomy of her right breast with reconstruction. Her main tumor measured about 5.5 centimeters. She had 9 of 9 positive lymph nodes. Plaintiff then underwent many weeks of chemotherapy, then many more weeks of chest wall radiation therapy.

ABC v. XYZ* -- $125,000.00 settlement. Medical malpractice case involving tear of common bile duct during gallbladder surgery. Plaintiff went to defendant hospital for the removal of a gall stone. During the surgical procedure to remove the gall stone, plaintiff's entire gall bladder was negligently removed. Further, during said surgical procedure, plaintiff's common bile duct was negligently stapled, and/or severed, causing toxins to spread internally requiring plaintiff to undergo an additional surgery and leaving a scar approximately 18 inches in length across his abdomen and chest area.

ABC v. XYZ* - $105,000.00 settlement of medical malpractice case where surgeon failed to remove foreign body (i.e. J-tube), following gastric surgery. This case settled at a court ordered mandatory settlement conference only a couple of days before trial.

ABC v. XYZ* -- $100,000.00 settlement against anesthesiologist for esophageal tear during intubation. Plaintiff was a 72 year old patient when she was admitted to hospital. Plaintiff had a breast mass which revealed infiltrating duct carcinoma, and was to undergo a left breast modified radical mastectomy, and sentinel lymph node biopsy following a left lumpectomy. Plaintiff was scheduled for a general anesthesia by way of an oral passageway. Defendant was the anesthesiologist assigned to plaintiff's case. Before the surgery began, defendant made three (3) unsuccessful attempts to intubate plaintiff. The unsuccessful efforts resulted in an esophageal tear. A second anesthesiologist was then called into the operating room to accomplish the intubation, which was successful on the very first attempt. Thereafter, plaintiff developed complications resulting from defendant's negligent care and treatment, (specifically the esophageal tear), which required her hospital stay to be extended almost two months. As a result of the foregoing, plaintiff required two additional operative procedures. She developed atrial fibrillation, aspiration pneumonia, respiratory arrest, fevers, and difficulty with swallowing.

Vehicular Accidents

ABC v. XYZ* -- $1,800,000.00 settlement in a wrongful death automobile accident case, which stems from the wrongful death of plaintiffs' teenage daughter. At the time of her death, the daughter lived with her parents. She was seventeen, (17), years old and preparing to enter her senior year of high school. Prior to her death, the decedent was riding as a passenger in defendants vehicle while their daughter and a co-defendant was driving. While on their way to a friend's house, the co-defendant struck a parked moving van, which was owned by other defendants and illegally parked on a highway overpass. As a result of the impact with the moving van, decedent suffered a traumatic injury which knocked her unconscious. She never regained consciousness. She was in a coma with life support which was thereafter discontinued.

Diekmann v. State of California -- $1,366,923.00 settlement for a solo vehicular accident resulting in wrongful death. Case was based upon highway design defect. On May 25, 1999, plaintiffs' decedent, Kenneth Diekmann, Sr., drove an armored van southbound on the Antelope Valley 14 Freeway to deliver money to "ATMs" in the area. En route to his last stop of the day, Mr. Diekmann entered a construction area where defendant Caltrans was adding carpool lanes just south of the Escondido Canyon on-ramp, in the rural area of Agua Dulce. Mr. Diekmann's van failed to negotiate a curve and left the freeway at a place where the State had failed to place guard rails. Guard rails were sorely needed - Mr. Diekmann's van went over the lip of a steep slope, sailed through the air for about 75 feet, and hit a dirt embankment head-on. The front of Mr. Diekmann's van crushed to about 11 inches wide; of course, he died at impact.

ABC v. v. XYZ* -- $1,075,000.00 settlement for a solo accident on an All Terrain Vehicle resulting in serious personal injuries. The plaintiff was a firefighter, and was participating in a non-company sponsored off-road event between firemen and policemen. Plaintiff's ATV crashed, and even though plaintiff was wearing a helmet, he sustained serious brain injury and paraplegia. Plaintiff sued, among other defendants, the helmet manufacturer located in Italy.

Apodaca v. Rouhana -- $1,000,000.00 settlement for wrongful death of 17 year old girl who was struck by bakery truck on highway. Plaintiff, WENDY APODACA, and her 3 daughters, Cassandra age 17, Carissa age 10, and Callista age 3, were all involved in this terrible accident. On the night of August 16, 2003, the Apodaca family and their friends were traveling on Interstate 15 from their homes in Las Vegas, to San Diego. The purpose of the trip was vacation. Among other vehicles within the caravan, was a Dodge Ram truck with an attached 5^th wheel trailer. When noticing that the trailer had sustained a flat tire, the friend driving the trailer pulled to the shoulder of the interstate and out of the lane of travel. Callista was seated in the Dodge, and Wendy and Cassandra were standing to the right of the trailer talking with the friend while he was fixing the flat, and checking on the other kids. Suddenly, and without warning, a bakery truck driven by the defendant veered off of the highway and slammed into the rear of the trailer causing it to lunge and strike Cassandra. Regretfully, Cassandra suffered fatal injuries and died at the scene. This case settled for policy limits.

ABC v. XYZ* -- $1,000,000.00 settlement for a truck vs. auto accident resulting in closed head injury to a neonatal nurse. Plaintiff was traveling on westbound I-10 freeway about 55 MPH in the slow lane preparing to exit at next off ramp, which was Tippecanoe when her vehicle was hit on the driver's side, then hit again, causing her vehicle to flip over. landing and staying upside down. This case settled for policy limits.

Arlt v. State Farm Ins. Co. -- $600,000.00 arbitration award in an auto vs. auto accident in Lake Havasu City, Arizona, resulting in serious leg injuries to an elderly woman.

ABC v. XYZ* - $500,000.00 This case arises from a triple impact motor vehicle accident in which the defendants' big-rig truck slammed into plaintiffs' compact car forcing it to roll-over 360° on the freeway. The jaws of life were needed to extract the plaintiffs from their car. The accident occurred on the westbound 10 Freeway in the City of Ontario. At approximately 10:30 that Sunday morning, plaintiffs were coasting along at approximately 60 mph in the #4 lane of the freeway, when suddenly, and without warning, the defendants' big-rig, a 2003 Freightliner, clipped the driver's side of their vehicle causing it to spin out of control counter-clockwise. As their vehicle ricocheted in front of the truck, the big-rig slammed into the driver's side door causing it to roll-over 360° and collide with a 3^rd vehicle. When rescue personnel arrived, they used the jaws of life to remove the plaintiffs from the wreckage.

Gandall v. XYZ* -- $235,000.00 settlement for a pedestrian who was struck by an automobile. The defendant only had minimal insurance policy limits, but Binder & Associates discovered that unbeknownst to plaintiff, she had a significant uninsured/underinsured motorist policy of her own. This case settled for policy limits.

ABC v. XYZ* -- $216,000.00 settlement in a negligence action for a woman who was struck by an unoccupied moving pick-up truck. Plaintiff was forty-three, (43), years old and had a husband and two children. Plaintiff had been a school teacher for many years, and taught at the school where the accident took place. Plaintiff specifically taught the school's "Write to Read" computer class, which is an experimental program that helps children learn to read by teaching them to write stories on computers. As part of plaintiff's further dedication to the school, she also helped run the after school pick-up program. Her job was to call out the names of the children as their parents arrived to pick them up. In previous years, the school did not have a program for picking up children at the school. Most children simply waited in front of the school or at a nearby gate. Shortly thereafter, a plan was placed into operation which called for parents to enter the southeast end of the parking lot, and drive in a line to the pick-up area. A parent or teacher then escorts each child to his or her parent's car. To prevent traffic from backing up on the street, the parents first line up their cars in the parking lot across the street from the school. The "pick-up" runs with precision, and generally takes no more than 15 minutes. A volunteer with a clip-board takes down the parents' names in the order they arrive at the parking lot. Another volunteer radios the names, by walkie talkie, to plaintiff in the lot across the street. Plaintiff then calls out the childrens' names, and adults then escort the children to one, (1), of the five, (5), pick-up areas, marked by orange cones which are roped together. When the five, (5), cars pull up to the cones, the volunteers open the passenger doors, help the children into their seat-belts, and close the doors. As those five, (5), cars pull away toward the southeast exit, another five, (5), cars drive in from the northeast entrance. The accident occurred one day at 3:00 p.m. At that time, plaintiff heard someone shouting that "a vehicle was moving," while she was assisting with the "pick-up" program. Plaintiff looked to see where the vehicle was coming from, and spotted the 1986 Blue Ford pick-up truck, without a driver, headed right for her. Plaintiff turned to see that nobody was behind her, hoping to dash out of the way. To her surprise however, forty, (40), or so children were sitting on the asphalt, using their backpacks as cushions, directly in the path of the moving vehicle. In an effort to at least slow the vehicle, plaintiff lunged at it. The truck dragged plaintiff the length of the parking stall before coming to rest against the curb, pinning her and several of the children. A triage unit and multi-victim incident command system was placed into operation, and paramedics began transporting the injured to local area hospitals. Plaintiff was hailed as a "hero" by parents, teachers, members of the community, and local newspapers, but she suffered severe injuries for her efforts to protect and save the school-children. She sued the owner of the truck who left the truck on a slope, in neutral and unattended. This case settled for policy limits.

ABC v. XYZ* - $150,000.00 settlement of car accident case in which plaintiff required knee surgery, and in the future possibly knee replacement. Case was initially settled for policy limits of third party, and then proceeded to under-insured motorist claim.

ABC v. XYZ* -- $115,000.00 settlement for auto versus pedestrian. This case settled following a jury trial and hung jury.

ABC v. XYZ* - $115,000.00 settlement of auto versus auto case where mom and daughter's vehicle was struck on freeway and rolled over. This case was settled for policy limits, and settled shortly before trial.

ABC v. XYZ* -- $100,000.00 settlement for auto v. auto resulting in back injury to teacher. This case settled for policy limits.

ABC v. XYZ* - $100,000.00 settlement of a case where motorist struck CalTrans workers as she was working on side of freeway. This case settled for policy limits.

Premises Liability

ABC v. XYZ* -- $3,270,000.00 settlement not including an additional $2,000,000.00 structured settlement in a wrongful death action arising out of a construction site accident. Plaintiffs' decedent, an independent business owner and trucking contractor, was killed when he was physically run over by his own dump truck which was rammed from the rear by one of the defendants who was operating a bulldozer. At that time, plaintiff's decedent was underneath his truck inspecting lose wires. The decedents wife and two children sued a number of contractors and sub-contractors, whose defense was that the decedent had been instructed to not exit his truck while in the construction zone. Binder & Associates meticulously reviewed thousands of pages of documents and found the smoking gun which led to the settlement.

ABC v. XYZ* - $562,500.00 settlement. Plaintiff was a 72 year old unmarried man of Vietnamese descent. Prior to, and at the time of, the subject accident, plaintiff was employed full time for over 20 years as an accountant and bookkeeper for an upscale eatery, located in South Pasadena, California. One day while plaintiff was working at his desk in his office at the restaurant, a 500 pound transformer belonging to defendant became dislodged from a utility pole which was holding it and then crashed through the roof of plaintiff's office. Although the transformer itself did not directly land on plaintiff, (it ultimately came to rest about 2 feet from plaintiff), plaintiff's office roof and ceiling did fall on plaintiff and cause plaintiff to sustain a very serious head injury and

ABC v. XYZ* - $500,000.00 settlement of a premises liability case arising from an apartment fire which occurred in the City of San Bernardino. Plaintiffs and her now 5 year old son, had come home from working a double shift (about 15 hrs) as a nursing assistant. When plaintiff arrived home about 7:00 a.m. she picked up her son from the upstairs apartment of a child care provider. Plaintiff carried her son downstairs to her apartment and put him to bed as he was still sleeping. Plaintiff then laid down to rest herself. The next thing plaintiff remembers is waking up to the yells of her 3 year old son. Plaintiff got out of bed, the apartment was black with smoke so she could not see were she was going. Plaintiff walked out of her room and bumped into her son in the hallway. Plaintiff then went back to her bedroom grabbed a sheet/blanket off her bed and wrapped it around her son and proceeded through the burning living room to the front window in the kitchen. Plaintiff did not even attempt to exit either of the bedroom windows because she knew the security bars could not be opened. Plaintiff did not try to open the front door because the flames were half way across the front door. In addition, the front door could not be opened because the deadbolt could only be opened from the inside with a key, which was not in the lock. Plaintiff had to break the kitchen window to escape the fire with her son. Plaintiff suffered 2^nd and 3^rd degree burns on about 30% of her body. She spent 20 days in the hospital and underwent two extremely painful skin graft surgeries. Plaintiff had no health insurance. The minor-plaintiff suffered from smoke inhalation and minor 1^st degree burns to his feet. He was treated and released in less than one day. Plaintiff did not dispute the fact that her 3 year old son started the fire. Plaintiffs contended that their injuries were proximately caused by the lack of "escape releases" on the security bars in the bedroom windows. In order to escape the fire plaintiffs had to traverse the living room where the fire was raging in order to get to the unbarred kitchen window. Plaintiffs' apartment unit was the only unit in the complex that had security bars on the bedroom windows. Plaintiff had complained to the owner about the illegal security bars when the illegal nature of the bars was brought to plaintiff's attention by a police officer who was investigating a burglary. The security bars were never brought into compliance before the fire. Binder & Associates retained a former California State Fire Marshall as its expert on fire safety, and the case settled shortly before trial.

ABC v. XYZ* -- $350,000.00 settlement in a negligence/wrongful death case against an apartment building for the death of a young boy in a swimming pool.

ABC v. HDI* -- $250,000.00 settlement in a negligence action for injuries sustained to a shopper who was hit on the head from a box that fell from above. Plaintiff was a 34 year old married man with an infant daughter and was shopping at defendant's store. While plaintiff was looking for a item in the "tool corral" a 40 pound box containing staplers fell 10 feet from an upper store shelf and struck plaintiff on his head. Plaintiff never saw the box before it fell and was not involved in any way in causing the box to fall on him. As a result, plaintiff lost consciousness for several minutes. Plaintiff was transported to a hospital where he was examined and later discharged.

ABC v. XYZ* - $199,000.00 settlement against warehouse type store. While plaintiff was shopping a trash-can fell from above and knocked him unconscious. Store denied trash-can ever struck plaintiff, but eventually a store worker, specifically safety manager, came forward at deposition and testified he happened to be walking by and saw the can hit plaintiff.

ABC v. XYZ* -- $150,000.00 settlement against homeowner for plaintiff who fell off roof and broke arm.

ABC v. XYZ* -- $150,001.00 settlement in a negligence case of a young boy who was injured on a playground at school. Plaintiff was seriously and permanently injured on a playground apparatus on the property of his school. At that time, plaintiff was approximately eight, (8), years of age and a student. He and his friends were left alone, unattended, and unsupervised in a playground which is designated for younger children attending the school. The subject injury occurred on a playground apparatus known as "monkey bars." On one afternoon, the school's lunch delivery from McDonalds was running late. The teachers therefore, directed plaintiff and his fellow students to wait and play at or near the lunch area, specifically in the younger children's playground. However, the playground's equipment was designed and intended for much smaller children. Once at the playground plaintiff and his friends began to play, and specifically jump, on the monkey bars. At that time , because a particular horizontal bar was already so close to him, plaintiff was unable to grasp it, and his face and mouth slammed into the apparatus. In addition to more complicated injuries, several of plaintiff's front teeth became completely dislodged and fell from his mouth. Moreover, the manner in which plaintiff's avulsed teeth were handled by the teachers is evidence of further negligence. In fact, many reliable sources specifically recommend that containers of H.B.S.S., (Hank's Balanced Salt Solution), should be kept at all schools and playgrounds at all times where dental accidents are likely to occur. This is the best and most ideal method of transportation for avulsed teeth recommended. The next most suitable solution in which to transport the teeth would have been milk, followed by saline, and then saliva. In this case, the teeth were not handled properly and were placed under running water which permanently damaged the periodontal ligament cells, (PDL cells). The teachers could have easily contacted any local dentist and/or hospital and received proper instructions. Instead, they did the very worst thing they could have done and caused more harm than good. In the final analysis, it is clear that the actions of the school staff added significantly to plaintiff's injury because his natural teeth could not be reinserted.

ABC v. XYZ* - $99,999.00 settlement of case involving highschool student who was negligently instructed to bounce on trampoline at the same time as another student during gymnastics class. Only one person is supposed to bounce at a time due to "double bounce" energy. Plaintiff fell off trampoline and broke both ankles requiring surgery.

ABC v. XYZ* -- $95,000.00 settlement for plaintiff who had toe run-over by bulldozer while on jobsite.

Darnice Brown v. City of Glendale - $85,322.00 jury verdict + interest and costs. This action involves a trip and fall accident which was caused by an uneven public sidewalk (sidewalk was raised over 1.5"). On March 16, 2004, at about 12 noon, plaintiff Darnice Brown was leaving the DMV in Glendale. She was walking westbound on the south sidewalk in front of a condominium complex at 1344 Fifth Street, when she stepped on an uneven portion of the sidewalk that was settled in some parts and was raised in others. This caused Ms. Brown to twist, dislocate, and fracture her ankle. Ms. Brown had never walked on this sidewalk before. The dangerous condition was a sunken sidewalk that was directly next to a "Pull Box" (type of electrical vault) which was in the center of the sidewalk. It is believed that the sidewalk was installed approximately in 1980 when the "Pull Box" was placed in the sidewalk. Over the years, part of the sidewalk next to the "Pull Box" settled and sunk.

Workers Compensation

Bernard v. Clearman's Steak and Stein -- $800,000.00 settlement of workers compensation case involving back injuries.

Rosales v. Depuy Ace Medical Corporation -- $360,000.00 settlement for a man who injured his hand while working on a punch press machine at his place of employment. The machine was a "punch press" and plaintiff claimed its point of operation guard had been disconnected. As a result, plaintiff sustained severe fractures to his hand and perforation to the nerves. The trial court granted defendant's motion for summary judgment concluding the machine was not the type covered under the punch-press exception to the California Labor Code. The California Court of Appeals reversed that decision. The California Supreme Court overturned the Court of Appeals, but not before a settlement was reached.

Employment

Martin v. City of Huntington Park -- $486,000.00 settlement for a police officer who sued the Huntington Park Police Department for discrimination and harassment.

ABC v. XYZ* - $375,000.00 for a group of ladies who were secretly videotaped while working at defendant's restaurant.

Assault & Battery

ABC v. XYZ* -- $500,000.00 settlement for a man who was assaulted by employees of a fast food restaurant.

Fisher v. XYZ* -- $300,000.00 jury verdict/settlement for a woman who was assaulted by an employee of a movie theater. This case settled following a verdict on compensatory damages, but before the punitive damages phase.

Defamation

ABC v. XYZ* -- $352,000.00 settlement in a defamation case involving a real estate appraiser. The appraiser was wrongfully accused of being involved in a "purchase scam" and defendant circulated a libelous memo containing such information.

Boating

Boswell v. Johnson -- $155,000.00 settlement for boating accident resulting in spinal fracture. At only twenty-three years of age, plaintiff Stephanie Boswell sustained a severe fracture to her back while a guest on defendant's boat. The accident occurred on June 29, 2001, in Lake Havasu, Arizona. On that date, plaintiff and her two friends were invited on defendant's boat. After several hours on the lake and while heading back toward the defendant's vacation home, the boat hit a wake. Consequently, plaintiff was violently thrown into the air while seated in the boat's open bow. Plaintiff fell as if she had been slammed back into the boat, and was unable to feel sensation and was unable to move. Despite requests by plaintiff, defendant, who was a fireman and certified paramedic, failed to seek help. Instead, he conducted his own emergency medical assessment of plaintiff, and drove the boat, without any spinal precautions whatsoever, back to the launch ramp. Defendant's truck was then used to transport plaintiff back to the vacation home, while plaintiff still remained on the floor of the boat, again with no spinal precautions. Defendant then lifted and carried plaintiff over the side of the boat and inside the home, and then once again performed a medical assessment. Defendant's advice to plaintiff was to "stretch." After an hour or so in the vacation house, defendant finally agreed that plaintiff needed professional emergency medical intervention. He then lifted her and carried plaintiff once again, and placed her in the passenger seat of her own car, again without any spinal precautions whatsoever. He then drove plaintiff to Needles Hospital, where it was determined that plaintiff had suffered a fractured spine. Plaintiff was then airlifted to University Medical Center, in Las Vegas, Nevada, at which time she underwent extensive surgery, including but not limited to, open reduction with internal fixation, to repair the spinal fracture. The fracture was at L-2, with 90% intrusion into the spinal canal, with neurological deficit. There was an extended hospitalization, and follow-up care, treatment, and rehabilitation.