WEBVTT

00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:04.999
Eyewitness News is everywhere.

00:00:05.000 --> 00:00:09.999
This is channel 3. Eyewitness News at 5:00.

00:00:10.000 --> 00:00:14.999
A baby brain damaged in a dangerous delivery. Now
that has led to the biggest medical malpractice award

00:00:15.000 --> 00:00:19.999
in State history, 36.5 million dollars.

00:00:20.000 --> 00:00:24.999
Channel 3 Eyewitness went through reporter Kara Sundlun was live in heart failure
with the mobile newsroom to tell us more about this history making case.

00:00:25.000 --> 00:00:29.999
About Six years ago, Nicolas Cole
is born at Hartford Hospital.

00:00:30.000 --> 00:00:34.999
Today, he can walk or talk or
do much of anything on his own.

00:00:35.000 --> 00:00:39.999
Jurors believe he would be perfectly healthy today
if doctors and nurses had done their jobs right.

00:00:40.000 --> 00:00:44.999
The jury gave $36.5 million
to the Cole’s family.

00:00:45.000 --> 00:00:49.999
$500,000 for past medical bills, $19.5
million for future medical bills,

00:00:50.000 --> 00:00:54.999
and 16.5$ for pain and suffering.
But it’s interesting to know

00:00:55.000 --> 00:00:59.999
the top four biggest medical malpractice awards in
Connecticut have often won by the same law firm.

00:01:00.000 --> 00:01:05.000
Koskoff, Koskoff & Bieder in Bridgeport. Tonight,
I’m Kara Sundlun, Channel 3, Eyewitness News.

00:01:30.000 --> 00:01:34.999
Yes, yes Bieder, hold on, please.
Okay, she’s on (inaudible).

00:01:35.000 --> 00:01:39.999
Okay, hold on, please. Good afternoon
Koskoff, Koskoff & Bieder.

00:01:40.000 --> 00:01:44.999
No, I didn’t mean. I
wanted acts of question.

00:01:45.000 --> 00:01:49.999
Okay, hold on. Acts (inaudible) she’ll
help you out. Listen Miss (inaudible).

00:01:50.000 --> 00:01:54.999
For children and family, this
is the second brother who died.

00:01:55.000 --> 00:01:59.999
This is the last picture taken of him before
he died less than a week, before he died.

00:02:00.000 --> 00:02:04.999
We have to try this where we have the most
likely good at getting Boston Red Sox fans.

00:02:05.000 --> 00:02:09.999
Okay. Substrate Connecticut.
Substrate Connecticut. Mm-mm.

00:02:10.000 --> 00:02:14.999
Well, that’s where it would be probably everywhere, isn’t it?
Yeah, yeah. This is one of the favorite pictures of him.

00:02:15.000 --> 00:02:19.999
Oh, my goodness. Six month
with my granddaughter.

00:02:20.000 --> 00:02:24.999
And this is the family

00:02:25.000 --> 00:02:29.999
at his graduation. Oh, my goodness,
what a handsome kid. They’re all.

00:02:30.000 --> 00:02:34.999
And it’s like all American family. Mm-mm.

00:02:35.000 --> 00:02:39.999
And this is also at his high school
graduation and that his prom.

00:02:40.000 --> 00:02:44.999
And apparently, there’s uh… she
was telling me about Julie on

00:02:45.000 --> 00:02:49.999
and off girlfriend since they
were nine years old. Oh, my God.

00:02:50.000 --> 00:02:54.999
On and off many, many times, she said they
happened to be off at the time of his…

00:02:55.000 --> 00:02:59.999
Crash. Death. But they both sort of knew

00:03:00.000 --> 00:03:04.999
that this was the girl
he was going to marry.

00:03:05.000 --> 00:03:09.999
He worked umm… at his father’s company.

00:03:10.000 --> 00:03:14.999
Save that money from his job to get his own car, and he also
wanted a motorcycle. He saved the money for a motorcycle.

00:03:15.000 --> 00:03:19.999
His plan was to become a state trooper.

00:03:20.000 --> 00:03:24.999
No kidding. Yeah. Does he had I mean… He
was… he was umm… attending community college

00:03:25.000 --> 00:03:29.999
and taking criminal justice.

00:03:30.000 --> 00:03:34.999
This was his car. Mustang Mach 1 or something.
Oh, my god. And that’s important to people

00:03:35.000 --> 00:03:39.999
who knows of… this is a pall
bearers at his funeral.

00:03:40.000 --> 00:03:44.999
She sort of glad that at least, you know, that she did a
big (inaudible). She knows the spirit in which she did.

00:03:45.000 --> 00:03:49.999
She may have wanted just to show the uh…
This looks like the young lady I think.

00:03:50.000 --> 00:03:54.999
Uh… I mean I… I want to look
at some of these pictures too,

00:03:55.000 --> 00:03:59.999
but tag going back for a minute
to uh… his work history.

00:04:00.000 --> 00:04:04.999
Did he get paid? Do you know? Yes, yes.
He did get paid. Yes, right actual terms.

00:04:05.000 --> 00:04:09.999
And so he would have had 16, he died at 18. So there would
have been atleast a year in the summer where he worked.

00:04:10.000 --> 00:04:14.999
Did he worked during the school years as well? Yes.
He did. Do he have any uh… income tax statement

00:04:15.000 --> 00:04:19.999
so we can give to uh… Gary Creaks.
Yeah, she gave me.

00:04:20.000 --> 00:04:24.999
So the full year here is 25.7, right.

00:04:25.000 --> 00:04:29.999
Now we have enough to talk to… We enough to start, we have enough for
the economists. Right, all right. So we’ll meet with Gary on Friday.

00:04:30.000 --> 00:04:34.999
Yep. Right, thanks. Good. Okay, thanks.
Hey, Gary, how are you?

00:04:35.000 --> 00:04:39.999
Hi. Good to see you.

00:04:40.000 --> 00:04:44.999
Okay, so… this is uh…

00:04:45.000 --> 00:04:49.999
Linda can describe the case to you. If it’s a new case,
we’re going to need uh… economic evaluation on this kid,

00:04:50.000 --> 00:04:54.999
relatively, young kid uh…
18 years of age he dies

00:04:55.000 --> 00:04:59.999
uh… having quite a work history.

00:05:00.000 --> 00:05:04.999
Have you got the income tax document?
Yes, I do. So he was a 2004

00:05:05.000 --> 00:05:09.999
graduate of Ellington high school.
Do he have grade?

00:05:10.000 --> 00:05:14.999
Yes. Okay, great. What kind
of a student was he, roughly?

00:05:15.000 --> 00:05:19.999
Uh… he was a B, low-B student average.

00:05:20.000 --> 00:05:24.999
He has some As, he has some Bs, he
has some Cs. Mm-mm. He has some A+s,

00:05:25.000 --> 00:05:29.999
and so he’s a little bit… I mean I haven’t
studied them to see if the certain areas of a…

00:05:30.000 --> 00:05:34.999
Sounds like maybe even above
average of the… Yeah.

00:05:35.000 --> 00:05:40.000
A+s. Yeah, he has a… he has A, Bs and Cs.

00:05:45.000 --> 00:05:49.999
A+ was in… A+ was in English.
Teacher comment,

00:05:50.000 --> 00:05:54.999
\"A pleasure to have in class.\" It seems
that the kid have leadership abilities

00:05:55.000 --> 00:05:59.999
based on what we discussed the other day about
him might be something that we would preserve.

00:06:00.000 --> 00:06:04.999
So we need to develop I think a little
bit more about that. Sure. And we…

00:06:05.000 --> 00:06:09.999
we’ve got the potential to do estimate certainly
based on level of educational attainment.

00:06:10.000 --> 00:06:14.999
Some college, bachelor’s degree or some college he’d already
finished his semester. So… In a completion of college.

00:06:15.000 --> 00:06:19.999
In a completion of college. And
then the problem with getting into

00:06:20.000 --> 00:06:24.999
umm… specific careers is a course
when someone’s 18 or 19 years of age,

00:06:25.000 --> 00:06:29.999
what they think they may want to do may need not
end up being what they want to do. That’s true.

00:06:30.000 --> 00:06:34.999
So that the… looking at the earnings of a state trooper, Connecticut
state trooper, for example, one of those stumbling block serves,

00:06:35.000 --> 00:06:39.999
we would have to get some data from the state of Connecticut.
Right. As to what state troopers are paid in starting wages, and…

00:06:40.000 --> 00:06:44.999
That’s obtainable, right. Probably. That
one thing we want to think about too

00:06:45.000 --> 00:06:49.999
is the inclusion of a value for household services
whether you want me to include that or not.

00:06:50.000 --> 00:06:54.999
I think we’re, well, we got to find
out where it goes for him. Umm…

00:06:55.000 --> 00:06:59.999
It will be a generic estimate, of
course, it’s not specific to him.

00:07:00.000 --> 00:07:04.999
There are I mean in the uh… nine or eleven
cases that we were involved in. Yes.

00:07:05.000 --> 00:07:09.999
Uh… You know that the special master that
Feinberg was looking for specific instances of

00:07:10.000 --> 00:07:14.999
uh… household stuff. What did they do?

00:07:15.000 --> 00:07:19.999
What was it that the deceased did
that had value etcetera, etcetera

00:07:20.000 --> 00:07:24.999
umm… that’s not the law in Connecticut. Right. And
someone of they say, if you wouldn’t necessarily expect

00:07:25.000 --> 00:07:29.999
them to a fully demonstrated their ability to perform
household. So and… No, he wouldn’t if his kid was…

00:07:30.000 --> 00:07:34.999
this kid sounds like the kind of kid
that, you know, that would be around

00:07:35.000 --> 00:07:39.999
in the leave it to Beaver years where he saw they’re cutting the
grass for the family even though he worked 48 hours in the later.

00:07:40.000 --> 00:07:44.999
Okay. Thirty-six hours, he would be
working 48 hours, uh… then came home,

00:07:45.000 --> 00:07:49.999
cut the grass and washed the dishes for his mom. So
we got to find out just a little bit more about what

00:07:50.000 --> 00:07:55.000
uh… services he provided.

00:08:00.000 --> 00:08:04.999
[music]

00:08:05.000 --> 00:08:09.999
Okay. What are doing?

00:08:10.000 --> 00:08:14.999
I want to put in them burn case. Okay. All right.
You’ve got it. A woman who’s a VBAC patient,

00:08:15.000 --> 00:08:19.999
she should be getting the closest possible care. They’re… they’re assigning her
to a first year resident. She’s… she’s huge. Right. She’s huge, she’s high risk,

00:08:20.000 --> 00:08:24.999
and they tell her to come back in two weeks. Right, Right.
And in addition to that, and if that’s not bad enough

00:08:25.000 --> 00:08:29.999
when she calls with the… They blow up.
They totally blow her up.

00:08:30.000 --> 00:08:34.999
Okay, so but… but even if she had a
perfectly good history of delivery,

00:08:35.000 --> 00:08:39.999
even those two were perfectly good.
And she has a mammoth baby

00:08:40.000 --> 00:08:44.999
umm… by this older son 99%. I think the vast majority, I think the
standard of care would have been to introduce her at 38 weeks

00:08:45.000 --> 00:08:49.999
because you don’t let her…, you don’t let
that baby grow two more weeks. Oh, okay.

00:08:50.000 --> 00:08:54.999
Induce trial of labor. In case to get to trial of labor.
So let me tell you what Craig said. Neither parent

00:08:55.000 --> 00:08:59.999
umm… completed high school. They both
went to the 11th grade in Puerto Rico.

00:09:00.000 --> 00:09:04.999
Uh… he is a carpenter, and he’s
basically learned on the job. She is

00:09:05.000 --> 00:09:09.999
or was a umm… housekeeper
at a nursing home.

00:09:10.000 --> 00:09:14.999
So he did two evaluations,

00:09:15.000 --> 00:09:19.999
one based on graduation from high school,
and the other based on some college.

00:09:20.000 --> 00:09:24.999
And both of those were around a million dollars. One was a
little more almost a little less, so say to million dollars.

00:09:25.000 --> 00:09:29.999
Anyway, I… I have his debt. I actually (inaudible) objection
here. Well, we have had other death cases of babies.

00:09:30.000 --> 00:09:34.999
But do you think this is… another case
is that I’ve settled have settled

00:09:35.000 --> 00:09:39.999
for a million give or take. Some are
little less, some are little more.

00:09:40.000 --> 00:09:44.999
Umm… but do you think there’s any
reason to compromise this case?

00:09:45.000 --> 00:09:49.999
No. No. There should be nothing that’s more
valuable than the death of a baby case.

00:09:50.000 --> 00:09:54.999
Loss of juvenile life for the
entire life… For us, for 80 years.

00:09:55.000 --> 00:09:59.999
So whatever you think life is worth. Yeah.
Five thousand dollars a year.

00:10:00.000 --> 00:10:04.999
I think I tell you multi… multiply eight times eight. But he
know they got… They’ll not do it. They don’t know. That’s right.

00:10:05.000 --> 00:10:09.999
But that’s the… that’s the law. I will
not settle this case. I think this case…

00:10:10.000 --> 00:10:14.999
I think it’s crazy to settle this case because
the only number you’d have to get from

00:10:15.000 --> 00:10:20.000
a jury is north of 750.

00:10:25.000 --> 00:10:29.999
It’s hard to figure out how
much to… is enough. And I know

00:10:30.000 --> 00:10:34.999
that you were struggling with that, or you
both were and was it enough, not enough.

00:10:35.000 --> 00:10:39.999
And the… the good news about what happened is
that they have made our decision easy. Right.

00:10:40.000 --> 00:10:44.999
Right. Yeah. There’s… there’s… there’s
no… there we don’t have anything

00:10:45.000 --> 00:10:49.999
that we have to decide. And
you know, if at some point,

00:10:50.000 --> 00:10:54.999
they offer 600 or 700 or 800 or
850 or they get to 900 or 925,

00:10:55.000 --> 00:10:59.999
whatever it is, you know, then
we have to start to think.

00:11:00.000 --> 00:11:04.999
But at the moment, there’s nothing to
think about. So it’s so much easy.

00:11:05.000 --> 00:11:09.999
They haven’t… they haven’t made
our… our lives difficult at all.

00:11:10.000 --> 00:11:14.999
Okay. Umm… They never took
your deposition, did they?

00:11:15.000 --> 00:11:19.999
No.

00:11:20.000 --> 00:11:24.999
Morgan, do you have copy
of your deposition?

00:11:25.000 --> 00:11:29.999
I don’t remember. I’m going to get your copy of it
because I’ll never go through it now a little bit.

00:11:30.000 --> 00:11:34.999
Uh… Because one of the
things that will happen is…

00:11:35.000 --> 00:11:39.999
is I will surely have
both of you testify. Uh…

00:11:40.000 --> 00:11:44.999
But what they will have from you
is what you have previously said.

00:11:45.000 --> 00:11:49.999
And so it’s important that we… that
you’re familiar with what it was

00:11:50.000 --> 00:11:54.999
that you said so that when we get to trial,
we’re not saying something different in trial

00:11:55.000 --> 00:11:59.999
than we said at the deposition.
Do you remember Marvin or Nicola?

00:12:00.000 --> 00:12:04.999
How your mom was feeling
in that spring and summer?

00:12:05.000 --> 00:12:09.999
Umm… That was…

00:12:10.000 --> 00:12:14.999
that was when they did the
surgery on her shoulder.

00:12:15.000 --> 00:12:19.999
Umm… October of ‘98 umm…
is normally around October

00:12:20.000 --> 00:12:24.999
and November and sat with my mother
when we search her cookie season.

00:12:25.000 --> 00:12:29.999
And she says doing all the baking.
What do you mean cookies season?

00:12:30.000 --> 00:12:34.999
Umm… she does all her cookie baking.
I mean before the holidays.

00:12:35.000 --> 00:12:39.999
Umm… and she goes to town

00:12:40.000 --> 00:12:44.999
umm… listening as she bakes
dozens, and dozens of cookies.

00:12:45.000 --> 00:12:49.999
And she had this one recipe that nobody
else, she wouldn’t give it to anybody else

00:12:50.000 --> 00:12:54.999
that umm… everybody wanted cookies. So she would make
the cookies for them instead of giving them recipe.

00:12:55.000 --> 00:12:59.999
[sil.]

00:13:00.000 --> 00:13:04.999
What kind of cookies were they? Pumpkin,
chocolatechip cookies. Sounds good.

00:13:05.000 --> 00:13:09.999
Did you get the recipe? Oh,
I have a recipe. Right.

00:13:10.000 --> 00:13:14.999
I’m her daughter. It’s
correct what you know

00:13:15.000 --> 00:13:19.999
because we have that recipe still.
Your mom died in November ‘99.

00:13:20.000 --> 00:13:24.999
Yes. Right. And she started
cookie season for 1999.

00:13:25.000 --> 00:13:29.999
Is it time for death?

00:13:30.000 --> 00:13:34.999
No, she was waiting umm… because she
know she’s going in for the procedure.

00:13:35.000 --> 00:13:39.999
She was in…. She was going to
be going at the end of October.

00:13:40.000 --> 00:13:44.999
And she said she would just wait until
when she came home in November.

00:13:45.000 --> 00:13:49.999
As long as we get them done, we used to try get them done
with thanks giving, but sometimes she gets a head start on.

00:13:50.000 --> 00:13:54.999
Uh… At the time of her death,
she was not smoking. No.

00:13:55.000 --> 00:13:59.999
No. And she hadn’t had
a cigarette since ‘95.

00:14:00.000 --> 00:14:04.999
That’s not her (inaudible). All right,
and before ‘95, when she smoked.

00:14:05.000 --> 00:14:09.999
The medical records says, she
was smoking four packs a day.

00:14:10.000 --> 00:14:14.999
Is that something? They’re… day… day… day full of it,
believe me, they’re full of it. That’s full of it. Yeah.

00:14:15.000 --> 00:14:19.999
How much did she smoke? Maybe one or two.
Maybe she smoke two packets a day

00:14:20.000 --> 00:14:24.999
or no four packets. Four packets. No. It’s four
packs, you’d have to have a cigarette in your mouth.

00:14:25.000 --> 00:14:29.999
Yeah. Maybe two. No, she wasn’t.
There are no deadlines.

00:14:30.000 --> 00:14:34.999
Said there are a lot about that. Yeah. What
about is it possible to smoke four times a day?

00:14:35.000 --> 00:14:39.999
You said in your deposition that you used
to walk together. And we do that in ‘99,

00:14:40.000 --> 00:14:44.999
and get for your dinner, you go for a walk.
Uh… No, you know, we will wait a few minutes,

00:14:45.000 --> 00:14:49.999
and then relax and we used to go for walk. Okay.
And… and who have trouble keeping up with home?

00:14:50.000 --> 00:14:54.999
Could you keep up with her? Did she…?
I have trouble keeping up with him

00:14:55.000 --> 00:14:59.999
And how about maybe did she have trouble… Yeah, we walk for minutes
(inaudible).I mean just going for walk and… Can would walk every night?

00:15:00.000 --> 00:15:04.999
Was not every night but… Many nights.
Yeah, many nights. In night at times,

00:15:05.000 --> 00:15:09.999
we go for walk here and there enough. You
mean mommy would do the walks in the night.

00:15:10.000 --> 00:15:14.999
Would you hold hands when you walk?
Yeah, we used to.

00:15:15.000 --> 00:15:19.999
Yeah. Did she sleep on more than one pillow? Mostly.
From the whole time you’re married or do that change?

00:15:20.000 --> 00:15:24.999
No, most of the time when we were together.
She had (inaudible)

00:15:25.000 --> 00:15:29.999
I mean she’s that (inaudible)
and for the time of the day,

00:15:30.000 --> 00:15:34.999
when she died they had separate beds.

00:15:35.000 --> 00:15:39.999
At the time of trial when you testified the
kinds of questions that we just talked about

00:15:40.000 --> 00:15:44.999
are the kinds of questions that I’ll
be asking you in front of the jury.

00:15:45.000 --> 00:15:49.999
I’m not so concerned about winning and losing the
case based upon the facts, and the evidence,

00:15:50.000 --> 00:15:54.999
but I don’t want them to be deciding the
case based upon all kinds of wacko,

00:15:55.000 --> 00:15:59.999
and bizarre things. You know, if uh…
if you come into court one day,

00:16:00.000 --> 00:16:04.999
and you’re wearing something this low cut for example,
the jury is going to make judgments about that,

00:16:05.000 --> 00:16:09.999
and we might lose a juror because of that night. So
they’re going to decide or if we’re in the courtroom,

00:16:10.000 --> 00:16:14.999
and uh… we’re waiting for something
to happen, and… and we look like

00:16:15.000 --> 00:16:19.999
we’re having too much fun, the jury is going
to make their decisions based upon that.

00:16:20.000 --> 00:16:24.999
So… so I like to be very careful about

00:16:25.000 --> 00:16:29.999
what the whole scene looks like.
And when we’re coming to court,

00:16:30.000 --> 00:16:34.999
the rule is when you get to be about
15 miles from the courthouse,

00:16:35.000 --> 00:16:39.999
15 miles from the courthouse, you
have to be under court behavior.

00:16:40.000 --> 00:16:44.999
So you know, I don’t care if you driving 110 miles an hour from when
you first start up, but you get within 15 miles of the courthouse.

00:16:45.000 --> 00:16:49.999
You’re driving in the speed limit, you’re putting your
directional signal on, you’re… you’re doing everything

00:16:50.000 --> 00:16:55.000
because the guy behind you, the guy next to you that’s
the juror, that’s going to be deciding your case.

00:17:00.000 --> 00:17:04.999
[music]

00:17:05.000 --> 00:17:09.999
Yes, Miss, hold on, please.

00:17:10.000 --> 00:17:18.000
[music]

00:17:20.000 --> 00:17:24.999
Hi. Okay. I’m sorry.

00:17:25.000 --> 00:17:29.999
[sil.]

00:17:30.000 --> 00:17:34.999
This is what we’re waiting for Chris.
Waiting for Richard… Bill. Bill.

00:17:35.000 --> 00:17:39.999
Put your legs down. She diagnosed (inaudible).
Yes. (inaudible) discussion about

00:17:40.000 --> 00:17:44.999
her name. I mean what? Food. Now…

00:17:45.000 --> 00:17:49.999
Is that then where is that?
That’s in his basement? Yeah.

00:17:50.000 --> 00:17:54.999
[sil.]

00:17:55.000 --> 00:17:59.999
This was taken six months
before he uh… before he died.

00:18:00.000 --> 00:18:04.999
He was hit by a car. He was a pedestrian. Yet, he
was a pedestrian. He got hit by this guy who’ve hit

00:18:05.000 --> 00:18:09.999
four or five people.

00:18:10.000 --> 00:18:14.999
I’ve never seen anybody that was alive,
and so that, you know, so stress.

00:18:15.000 --> 00:18:19.999
Did… did the critics give her, give money?

00:18:20.000 --> 00:18:24.999
Did he put an economic value on the
services rendered by the parents?

00:18:25.000 --> 00:18:29.999
I think we should do it for purposes of this, for the
purposes of this settlement. We shouldn’t claim it.

00:18:30.000 --> 00:18:34.999
We should have that number. What additional money
can we get for the cost of the (inaudible).

00:18:35.000 --> 00:18:39.999
(inaudible) to another $500 or $1000.
Yeah, and I agree, I think so…

00:18:40.000 --> 00:18:44.999
Three, it’s two years. Three years. We’re on
the search 24 hours. Twenty-four hour care.

00:18:45.000 --> 00:18:49.999
I’m telling you that’s more than that two years
around the clock care would be more than that.

00:18:50.000 --> 00:18:54.999
(inaudible). You think that’s a lot. No, I don’t think
it… No, I don’t think. I mean, yes, it has. No, 500,000.

00:18:55.000 --> 00:18:59.999
For two years, of course, DNA. Twenty
four hours a day care. It’s three people.

00:19:00.000 --> 00:19:04.999
It’s five. Right. With three years
that’s $250,000 a year. Divided by…

00:19:05.000 --> 00:19:09.999
Divided by 5 is $50,000 apart
is… is a nurse. (inaudible).

00:19:10.000 --> 00:19:14.999
An LPN going to get $50,000 a year for one ship.
I don’t know when we take… If you pay an agency.

00:19:15.000 --> 00:19:19.999
Yeah… Yeah, if you pay an agency, right. Okay. All
right. So let’s say 500,000 just for argument’s sake.

00:19:20.000 --> 00:19:24.999
Tell me a little bit about uh…
this guy’s enjoyment of life.

00:19:25.000 --> 00:19:29.999
In other words, he was a
weight lifter, but any work,

00:19:30.000 --> 00:19:34.999
does he enjoy work? Do we have any information about
whether we like the kind of (inaudible) feeling he was in,

00:19:35.000 --> 00:19:39.999
or and what about his weight lifting? Was he
competitive weightlifter or any of that stuff?

00:19:40.000 --> 00:19:44.999
No, he wasn’t a competitive weightlifter. He was
just… he liked to workout, but I think the main

00:19:45.000 --> 00:19:49.999
uh… focus of his uh… his life was
his family, his extended family.

00:19:50.000 --> 00:19:54.999
So he was… he was earning a living as an electronic, 32,000 for
an electronics (inaudible), and then he works additionally…

00:19:55.000 --> 00:19:59.999
(inaudible), he’s a high school
graduate with a… with the…

00:20:00.000 --> 00:20:04.999
with the Certificate from the Connecticut
school electronics. Great. So where are we?

00:20:05.000 --> 00:20:09.999
Demand and settlement and take. Demand and take.
Right. I would say demand that 15 million bucks

00:20:10.000 --> 00:20:14.999
because they’ve got half that. And I think it realistically
could get to know. No, they actually have more than that.

00:20:15.000 --> 00:20:19.999
They’ve got seven million bucks. They’ve
got seven for through pretension.

00:20:20.000 --> 00:20:24.999
Uh… You know, and then there’s rather coverage
levels about that. I love that. Due to his doctor’s…

00:20:25.000 --> 00:20:29.999
Oh, I see, I see. So they may go to
like 30 million, 40 million may seem…

00:20:30.000 --> 00:20:34.999
Oh, I didn’t… I didn’t get that.
Umm… I’d say 20.

00:20:35.000 --> 00:20:39.999
First I say don’t mediate. I don’t think

00:20:40.000 --> 00:20:44.999
we should mediate what judge wanted this, and I think we’re in the driver’s
seat, and I don’t know why we would mediate or however watered down.

00:20:45.000 --> 00:20:49.999
But having said that, I would demand
uh… 12 million and take (inaudible).

00:20:50.000 --> 00:20:54.999
The… the defender has got 30

00:20:55.000 --> 00:20:59.999
something year old electronics. I was…
here with the numbers (inaudible).

00:21:00.000 --> 00:21:04.999
How conscious was he of his state during 31years? We don’t
think… Now, what the question is can we prove anything?

00:21:05.000 --> 00:21:09.999
Because he proved, it’s our burden of
proof to be prove any consciousness,

00:21:10.000 --> 00:21:14.999
and the other question is does it make a difference? Great. All
right. Well, if we can prove it, if we can even arguably prove it,

00:21:15.000 --> 00:21:19.999
I’m with Craig. I’d demand thirty take
twelve. I had demand 7.4 take four.

00:21:20.000 --> 00:21:24.999
I just don’t think a jury
is going to give you…

00:21:25.000 --> 00:21:29.999
Go back to the defense lawyer. I should. I’m embarrassed. But I don’t think,
I don’t think a jury is going to give you that much money for this case.

00:21:30.000 --> 00:21:34.999
I mean I think you’ve got a lot of money, but
you’re not going to get $12 million. Okay.

00:21:35.000 --> 00:21:39.999
You’re all are pissed the anesthesiologists. You maybe… Regina says, \"There’s
no real punitive value to him.\" He has a… less than a million dollars…

00:21:40.000 --> 00:21:44.999
Stop yelling at me. Right. He’s got less
than million dollar earning capacity.

00:21:45.000 --> 00:21:49.999
I mean even the medicals
are not that stunning.

00:21:50.000 --> 00:21:54.999
Right. So the rest of it is all pain, and
suffering, and loss of enjoyment of life,

00:21:55.000 --> 00:21:59.999
I don’t like the 30 year old single… Would you put his earning capacity or
as a… as a… would you try the case putting in the amount of his capacity?

00:22:00.000 --> 00:22:04.999
(inaudible). Can they prove it, jurors are…

00:22:05.000 --> 00:22:09.999
just give the demand of $20 million
uh… The other side (inaudible).

00:22:10.000 --> 00:22:14.999
Even hire are doing about $20 million is
it, and I had $7 million all the way.

00:22:15.000 --> 00:22:19.999
I think I could be shaved half of that.
I have $7 million.

00:22:20.000 --> 00:22:25.000
All right, any other questions?

00:22:30.000 --> 00:22:34.999
Good evening. How are you?
Everyone comfortable?

00:22:35.000 --> 00:22:39.999
[music]

00:22:40.000 --> 00:22:44.999
Everyone have something to eat.

00:22:45.000 --> 00:22:49.999
Here all sold. Okay, thank
you for coming this evening.

00:22:50.000 --> 00:22:54.999
Umm… you’re here tonight to help
parties to a last. The purpose of

00:22:55.000 --> 00:22:59.999
umm… bringing you all here is to help us gain
a better understanding of the strengths,

00:23:00.000 --> 00:23:04.999
and weaknesses umm…

00:23:05.000 --> 00:23:09.999
of each of their positions in the hopes that it
will help them reach a resolution of the case.

00:23:10.000 --> 00:23:18.000
[sil.]

00:23:20.000 --> 00:23:24.999
If you ask then their opinion about
the case of this slide of a second,

00:23:25.000 --> 00:23:29.999
they would all be in our favor.

00:23:30.000 --> 00:23:38.000
[sil.]

00:23:55.000 --> 00:23:59.999
Now is the time to turn it
off, and asking for a verdict.

00:24:00.000 --> 00:24:04.999
To me I want to believe,
I need to see the tape.

00:24:05.000 --> 00:24:09.999
Question here is was it that with the
hospital? And was he anesthesiologist? Never.

00:24:10.000 --> 00:24:15.000
After seeing that tape, there
can be his proceedings.

00:24:20.000 --> 00:24:24.999
And with this supposedly be a vegetative
state. He lost answer due to his brain

00:24:25.000 --> 00:24:29.999
and was not able to do things.
But guess what (inaudible).

00:24:30.000 --> 00:24:34.999
Did you hear him mourning and glowing on near when
they were moving in, around? Did you see his eyes?

00:24:35.000 --> 00:24:39.999
Did you see that moving do this?
When the person is in a (inaudible),

00:24:40.000 --> 00:24:44.999
you could put them in your hands and when matter,
they will not move when his eyes were actually moving

00:24:45.000 --> 00:24:49.999
with our hands? So these
lies completely fainted.

00:24:50.000 --> 00:24:54.999
Okay. This happens in 18 hours (inaudible).
That’s the only (inaudible).

00:24:55.000 --> 00:24:59.999
What does she do?

00:25:00.000 --> 00:25:05.000
Is it about to end?

00:25:10.000 --> 00:25:14.999
And how did she know about
what happens in all hospitals?

00:25:15.000 --> 00:25:19.999
Think of looking at any of your children.

00:25:20.000 --> 00:25:24.999
I think that put the diaper
and you can’t move in.

00:25:25.000 --> 00:25:29.999
There’s… that’s demand. Doing the new gags, that’s part of the pain,
and so… That’s the pain and suffering. (inaudible). But I think

00:25:30.000 --> 00:25:34.999
But some of these are trying to put it that way. But I think that’s big
(inaudible). You wanted to make the potential earnings thing less.

00:25:35.000 --> 00:25:39.999
Okay. And that bigger, that makes more
sense to me. Do you know what I’m saying?

00:25:40.000 --> 00:25:44.999
Yeah. I just counted the numbers though.
Such a big thing.

00:25:45.000 --> 00:25:49.999
I would say just for argument, for tonight’s
argument, you know, pain and suffering.

00:25:50.000 --> 00:25:54.999
You know, million bars.

00:25:55.000 --> 00:25:59.999
Seven million. Five million each to pay this. Sorry, I don’t see
them talk about that, and I’ll talk about that part of a table.

00:26:00.000 --> 00:26:04.999
There were hidden numbers of (inaudible). It
was uh… it was all in the family. It was all…

00:26:05.000 --> 00:26:09.999
Because of the family. Because of the family, and they need to be…
and they’re going to get the money, and they should be compensated…

00:26:10.000 --> 00:26:14.999
For taking care for them. Care of them and
they suffered that 24 hours in the hospital,

00:26:15.000 --> 00:26:19.999
must have been terrible. Yeah, the 24 hours a day at
home during their suffering they were talking about.

00:26:20.000 --> 00:26:24.999
Mm-mm. So they… there was
always which is exactly

00:26:25.000 --> 00:26:29.999
what we heard in the last case which we tried.
You know, a non-economic damage even though

00:26:30.000 --> 00:26:34.999
the child was alive. Oh, yeah, right. You know, this is for the family, this
is (inaudible). But the numbers in to discussion read from a low of a million

00:26:35.000 --> 00:26:39.999
to a high of 300 million. Okay.
Well, the low of a million

00:26:40.000 --> 00:26:44.999
actually throughout a number, the high was… was high
was… was the current powerball lottery running.

00:26:45.000 --> 00:26:49.999
Was it really? Wow. That’s why
they got shifted to London. Wow.

00:26:50.000 --> 00:26:54.999
Wait a second. That’s not a bad thing
to use in… in the final argument.

00:26:55.000 --> 00:26:59.999
No, it’s actually, absolutely the worst to think. To
recreate laws of life with… With winning the lottery.

00:27:00.000 --> 00:27:04.999
Wining the lottery. Yeah. No, sir. What does
a person have to do to win the lottery,

00:27:05.000 --> 00:27:09.999
to go buy a ticket for a dollar, and it doesn’t mean
anything, and they come into all this, you know,

00:27:10.000 --> 00:27:14.999
money as compared to what all this young man went through, and his
family went through. These people are not here to win the lottery.

00:27:15.000 --> 00:27:19.999
They’re here for justice. (inaudible).
I know, but it’s…

00:27:20.000 --> 00:27:24.999
it’s the analogy is so terrible. It’s… it…
it’s the worst. The other varied just 4.37.

00:27:25.000 --> 00:27:29.999
Four point three seven.

00:27:30.000 --> 00:27:34.999
Yes, they gave all the economic, and then uh… one of the half
rating each of pain and suffering and loss of enjoyment.

00:27:35.000 --> 00:27:39.999
And two people in there said that video they didn’t
need to see that at all. There was over kill and…

00:27:40.000 --> 00:27:44.999
In this group? Oh, when this it… was it is in this group, the two guys? Now
in this group, all the women seemed to have divorced themselves. Oh, really?

00:27:45.000 --> 00:27:49.999
No, they… there… there’s a
psychologist in the other room,

00:27:50.000 --> 00:27:54.999
and uh.. and I forget what the other guy
does. And both of them were empathic

00:27:55.000 --> 00:27:59.999
that they didn’t want… they didn’t need to see that.
They all, you know, still photos would have been fine.

00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:04.999
We’re gonna back to the office to work.
We got to work some more.

00:28:05.000 --> 00:28:09.999
Yeah, we’re not done. What?

00:28:10.000 --> 00:28:15.000
[sil.]

00:28:25.000 --> 00:28:29.999
I didn’t know I was lucky before I met you.
Now I know I’m lucky uh… because…

00:28:30.000 --> 00:28:34.999
because umm… it’s clear that to me that uh…
that you however you love he was client.

00:28:35.000 --> 00:28:39.999
So I’m really, I’m really feel good
about that. Had, have you guys uh…

00:28:40.000 --> 00:28:44.999
had any formalization with relationship?

00:28:45.000 --> 00:28:49.999
Yes, we had our ceremony, ceremonial
commitment, November 12th, 2005.

00:28:50.000 --> 00:28:54.999
November. I mean lot went to effect during Connecticut,
October 1st. So uh… I mean… And when was it dated at?

00:28:55.000 --> 00:28:59.999
November 12th, 2005.

00:29:00.000 --> 00:29:04.999
And when did the argument under affect? October 1st,
2005. We would have done it then, but there was issues

00:29:05.000 --> 00:29:09.999
with trying to get family and everybody
to come to the wedding, and that…

00:29:10.000 --> 00:29:14.999
And I refused to have it unless
their parents were there.

00:29:15.000 --> 00:29:19.999
Have you got the nerve? Oh, yeah. Great. Yeah, we showed.
Yeah, she was always showed off. and she’s been… Good?

00:29:20.000 --> 00:29:24.999
She’s been sort of crazy, tell her to mention it
because it… this is… it’s like if you can know. Right.

00:29:25.000 --> 00:29:29.999
I can be positive, but if you don’t tell
anything, I don’t have to deal with it. Right.

00:29:30.000 --> 00:29:34.999
We basically, you know, we’ve been
together for 20 literally, now 21years,

00:29:35.000 --> 00:29:39.999
and March has always been accepted as a
member of fit my family. That’s correct.

00:29:40.000 --> 00:29:44.999
And we’ve never… And she was accepted
as my mom… Her mom was… Until she died.

00:29:45.000 --> 00:29:49.999
And umm…

00:29:50.000 --> 00:29:54.999
Augusta her daughter, but we never really discussed
it with my parents. You know what, I’ve got…

00:29:55.000 --> 00:29:59.999
It was like by the way mom, we’re getting married. You want to come in, and, you know, we want you in that. \"Okay,
great.\" And then it was like she’s going around telling everybody, \"They’re getting married, getting married.\"

00:30:00.000 --> 00:30:04.999
I’m like, why did I wait this 20 years? Oh, I’m
wasted 20 years for this. This really stupid.

00:30:05.000 --> 00:30:09.999
Well, you could have waited 30 or 40. Yeah.
And it wasn’t wasted for less than 25.

00:30:10.000 --> 00:30:14.999
A friend of ours, Gerda,
called me up to congratulate.

00:30:15.000 --> 00:30:19.999
Now what she didn’t know, I had just gotten this news three days before
that she was misdiagnosed, and I was thinking this is the end of the world

00:30:20.000 --> 00:30:24.999
because she’s not going to make it. And I’m crying on the phone
to her and I said, a big deal. And it’s going to do us any good.

00:30:25.000 --> 00:30:29.999
Yeah, when was it actually? When was the Civil… when was
that commitment ceremony umm… relationship to the diagnosis?

00:30:30.000 --> 00:30:34.999
The… the diagnosis was last
April, a year ago, April.

00:30:35.000 --> 00:30:39.999
First of all, I honestly
started to know as of February

00:30:40.000 --> 00:30:44.999
that March was not going to be here by the summer
time. I knew in my heart that March was dying.

00:30:45.000 --> 00:30:49.999
I thought it was lazy. And she was just
not even going to acknowledge that.

00:30:50.000 --> 00:30:54.999
I mean we couldn’t talk about it because she was just, you know, \"I’m going to
go see my brother in October. And I’m thinking myself, you’re going to be alive.

00:30:55.000 --> 00:30:59.999
You’re going downhill when you have no idea you’re
going down. So we were trying to broach that subject

00:31:00.000 --> 00:31:04.999
when… when somebody is dying, it’s… how do you… how do you
talk about that? How do you bring it up here? By the way,

00:31:05.000 --> 00:31:09.999
do you really like to die? Couldn’t do it.
I was talking to everybody else about it,

00:31:10.000 --> 00:31:14.999
I was crying to everybody else about it. Everybody else
saw it, and I didn’t see it or believe it was March.

00:31:15.000 --> 00:31:19.999
You know, umm… when… when a spouse
has suffered an injury the…

00:31:20.000 --> 00:31:24.999
the heterosexual relationship,

00:31:25.000 --> 00:31:29.999
the husband or wife of the injured
person gets to make a claim.

00:31:30.000 --> 00:31:34.999
And umm… I’m sort of wondering,
and I’d have to talk it over

00:31:35.000 --> 00:31:39.999
some other people here to see what they think.
We have not filed a claim on your behalf.

00:31:40.000 --> 00:31:44.999
And the reason is because it’s not
recognized by the law. It is in Connecticut.

00:31:45.000 --> 00:31:49.999
A claim on your behalf. Yeah, it’s in Connecticut.
I’m supposed to have all the rights of a spouse…

00:31:50.000 --> 00:31:54.999
As of one time, you got married? I guess
hasn’t… hasn’t… No-one ever filed a claim

00:31:55.000 --> 00:31:59.999
for under situation like
this as far as I know.

00:32:00.000 --> 00:32:04.999
And I’m contemplating, filing
a claim on your behalf.

00:32:05.000 --> 00:32:09.999
And uh… I know right away
will get objections to it.

00:32:10.000 --> 00:32:14.999
And I would like to… I would… I think it would
be really a great thing to go to court,

00:32:15.000 --> 00:32:19.999
and to listen to the other side argue why
you should have been told to a claim.

00:32:20.000 --> 00:32:24.999
My feeling is that if this
could help someone else

00:32:25.000 --> 00:32:29.999
by being… being out there. Right.

00:32:30.000 --> 00:32:34.999
And bringing our… our relationship
to the front. Uh… I would go for it.

00:32:35.000 --> 00:32:39.999
The… The reason well, that
the lead, that this case

00:32:40.000 --> 00:32:44.999
I represent a uh… woman
who is dying of cancer,

00:32:45.000 --> 00:32:49.999
and umm… she was diagnosed
with a form of cancer,

00:32:50.000 --> 00:32:54.999
and treated for three and a half years for
that cancer, and she never had that cancer.

00:32:55.000 --> 00:32:59.999
And while they were treating her with that
cancer, her real cancer was being untreated,

00:33:00.000 --> 00:33:04.999
and was growing to the point where
when she finally was diagnosed,

00:33:05.000 --> 00:33:09.999
the doctor opened her up
down in Baltimore, and said,

00:33:10.000 --> 00:33:14.999
according to them that he just…

00:33:15.000 --> 00:33:19.999
he’d never seen that much cancer in
somebody. He said, uh… he told them

00:33:20.000 --> 00:33:24.999
that… that he remembered something of his
mentor told him which is if you don’t know

00:33:25.000 --> 00:33:29.999
where to start, just start somewhere. Mm-mm.
And he just started taking things out,

00:33:30.000 --> 00:33:34.999
took out about half of her organs, and uh… her
intestines, and things like that, and she although,

00:33:35.000 --> 00:33:39.999
although, it’s hurtful to say this because she’s a great
lady, she’s going to die. First of all, the only complaint

00:33:40.000 --> 00:33:45.000
you can make now since she’s hasn’t died.
No. I… The only complaint you can make…

00:33:50.000 --> 00:33:54.999
It was consortium uh… during the
period of the injury. Oh, sure.

00:33:55.000 --> 00:33:59.999
When she dies, and you’d add an
allegation… Of wrongful death.

00:34:00.000 --> 00:34:04.999
Of… of… of wrongful death. And loss of consortium.
And loss of consortium as a result of the death.

00:34:05.000 --> 00:34:09.999
So you have to separate claims.

00:34:10.000 --> 00:34:14.999
What I want to do though when I think I mean
I like all of it is pushing the envelope,

00:34:15.000 --> 00:34:19.999
but I want to really push the
envelope, I want to be able to,

00:34:20.000 --> 00:34:24.999
although it’s relevant. It’s really
irrelevant. You’d like to know where…

00:34:25.000 --> 00:34:29.999
I was going to say… I was
going to say that she should…

00:34:30.000 --> 00:34:34.999
that really for 20 years, they’ve been married. Right. And
therefore, she has a loss of consortium during the time period

00:34:35.000 --> 00:34:39.999
where she’s been sick or
unnecessarily harmed.

00:34:40.000 --> 00:34:44.999
It is relevant.

00:34:45.000 --> 00:34:49.999
I want… in other words,
if I get this from, all…

00:34:50.000 --> 00:34:54.999
Make them both because first
of all, you’re… Do I make?

00:34:55.000 --> 00:34:59.999
When you make the… suppose she doesn’t die, but she
lingers through the next 30 years of agony. Uh… Your…

00:35:00.000 --> 00:35:04.999
your argument is what you want
your argument to be is umm…

00:35:05.000 --> 00:35:09.999
that it should be recognized not only
because they have a civil union… Right.

00:35:10.000 --> 00:35:14.999
… but because they also had 20 years.
Those… right now, you don’t have to allege,

00:35:15.000 --> 00:35:19.999
they had all 40 years together. Exactly.

00:35:20.000 --> 00:35:24.999
Preferred if they’re married. You just
have to allege loss of consortium.

00:35:25.000 --> 00:35:29.999
The Fox 61 news at 10 begins right now. The same sex couple
is going where no gay couple is ever been in Connecticut.

00:35:30.000 --> 00:35:34.999
Today Margaret Mueller, and Charlotte Stacey
of (inaudible) file the medical malpractice

00:35:35.000 --> 00:35:39.999
suit against a couple of doctors.
Fox 61’s Earl Glazier tells us

00:35:40.000 --> 00:35:44.999
the couple is about to become a test case
for the state’s new civil union law.

00:35:45.000 --> 00:35:49.999
Give me a little kiss William Hart.

00:35:50.000 --> 00:35:54.999
Margaret Mueller in African grey bird TM
have a spellbinding skit. And you’ll kiss.

00:35:55.000 --> 00:35:59.999
However, it’s Mueller, and her same sex partner
Charlotte Stacey grabbing the headlines.

00:36:00.000 --> 00:36:04.999
They are presumably Connecticut’s first gay
couple to file a medical malpractice lawsuit

00:36:05.000 --> 00:36:09.999
asserting rights under the state’s new civil
union statute claiming a loss of consortium,

00:36:10.000 --> 00:36:14.999
a fancy word for love,
sex, and companionship.

00:36:15.000 --> 00:36:19.999
Mueller and Stacey say doctors misdiagnosed Mueller’s cancer
causing irreparable damage in hardship to the relationship.

00:36:20.000 --> 00:36:24.999
It was so preventable. There were
so many things are unpreventable.

00:36:25.000 --> 00:36:30.000
Like birds of the same feather, Mueller says,
\"No matter what, nothing will tear them apart.\"

00:36:35.000 --> 00:36:39.999
Hey, buddy, it’s Kathleen (inaudible).

00:36:40.000 --> 00:36:44.999
How are you? I’m good, how are you?
Just survived the blizzard.

00:36:45.000 --> 00:36:49.999
Yeah. How’s business? Good, good.

00:36:50.000 --> 00:36:54.999
Just I want to… I want to give
you the update on the case.

00:36:55.000 --> 00:36:59.999
Umm… And then see what questions you have. It’s coming together
pretty well in terms of the liability aspects. What I want to do now

00:37:00.000 --> 00:37:04.999
is give the defense a better
idea about the damages.

00:37:05.000 --> 00:37:09.999
All right. So I’m thinking about
is this, and we do this a lot.

00:37:10.000 --> 00:37:14.999
Umm… I want to put together a videotape. You know, you gave me all the
videotapes of the home movies that you shot of you and Tracy, and the kids.

00:37:15.000 --> 00:37:19.999
What I want to do is give those
to a professional film company.

00:37:20.000 --> 00:37:24.999
Umm… Their name is (inaudible) they’re from
Woodbridge. And I work with them all the time.

00:37:25.000 --> 00:37:29.999
And then I want to come out to
your house, and interview on,

00:37:30.000 --> 00:37:34.999
you know, while they’re… while they’re filming
you. Uh… Interview probably you umm… your in-laws,

00:37:35.000 --> 00:37:39.999
Tracy sisters, maybe a friend if you want
to identify a friend, or two for me.

00:37:40.000 --> 00:37:44.999
And what would happen is I would be there
with you. Uh… I will ask you questions

00:37:45.000 --> 00:37:49.999
about Tracy in different, you know,
categories, things that we’ll talk about.

00:37:50.000 --> 00:37:54.999
They’ll film the whole thing. And then what they do
is they condense all of those interviews into like

00:37:55.000 --> 00:37:59.999
a 15 or 10 minute uh… settlement
brochure, a video sort of brochure.

00:38:00.000 --> 00:38:04.999
We then give to the defense, and we say, this
is, you know, a picture view of the case

00:38:05.000 --> 00:38:09.999
as opposed to me going and telling them,
\"She was a beautiful young woman,

00:38:10.000 --> 00:38:14.999
and there’s kids.\" And then you know, that kind of thing.
And it makes it much more… it’s a much better presentation.

00:38:15.000 --> 00:38:19.999
It’s a fair presentation I think, and it’s more dramatic. And they’ll
have a better understanding of the case. And that’s important to me.

00:38:20.000 --> 00:38:24.999
All right. So what do you… first of
all, how do you feel about that?

00:38:25.000 --> 00:38:29.999
[sil.]

00:38:30.000 --> 00:38:34.999
Jerome did you name some spellings (inaudible). Oh, yeah. You know,
I was thinking of getting them transcribed. (inaudible) Nice, yeah.

00:38:35.000 --> 00:38:39.999
Okay, I translate with the picture or so.
Sure. How are we looking?

00:38:40.000 --> 00:38:44.999
Disapproved here. She looks, she
always put a flower vase or something.

00:38:45.000 --> 00:38:49.999
You like that. Yeah, I know.
It’s different when…

00:38:50.000 --> 00:38:54.999
when Jeff is doing with me because he’s
not so artistic, he’s not so fussy.

00:38:55.000 --> 00:38:59.999
Puts a trophy. All right. I’m on photo detail back here.
I’ll be look nice and relaxed. Just you know, stay.

00:39:00.000 --> 00:39:04.999
Take the breath. All right.
Stay comfortable.

00:39:05.000 --> 00:39:09.999
Uh… Let’s start by having
you say your name and spell

00:39:10.000 --> 00:39:14.999
because they’re going to put your name underneath your face
when you’re talking so. Okay. My name is Robert Tabshey.

00:39:15.000 --> 00:39:19.999
Now should I spell the Robert too.
No, we can spell that.

00:39:20.000 --> 00:39:24.999
Okay. My name is Robert Tabshey.
T as in tom, b is in boy, shey

00:39:25.000 --> 00:39:29.999
And you said Tabshey. Yes. I
would say Tabshey. And umm…

00:39:30.000 --> 00:39:34.999
do you prefer to call Bobby or Bob? Bobby.

00:39:35.000 --> 00:39:39.999
Bobby, okay. Okay. Umm…

00:39:40.000 --> 00:39:44.999
by the way, tell me little bit about Tracy.
All right. we’re gonna start with how you met

00:39:45.000 --> 00:39:49.999
and where did you grew up? Okay. Okay. We grew up
in Wethersfield, and I met her in high school.

00:39:50.000 --> 00:39:54.999
Okay, stop. Okay. Tracy and I…

00:39:55.000 --> 00:39:59.999
Okay. Tracy and I met in Wethersfield, and I met her
probably sophomore or junior year in high school,

00:40:00.000 --> 00:40:04.999
and it was pretty much a casual
meeting through mid mutual friends,

00:40:05.000 --> 00:40:09.999
you know, how high school is. And we…

00:40:10.000 --> 00:40:14.999
our first day actually was the
senior… senior prom or senior ball.

00:40:15.000 --> 00:40:19.999
Can you tell about some vacations?

00:40:20.000 --> 00:40:24.999
[sil.]

00:40:25.000 --> 00:40:29.999
(inaudible).

00:40:30.000 --> 00:40:34.999
Did you go to Disney World? Every
year even before the kids,

00:40:35.000 --> 00:40:39.999
we would go to Disney. I mean Fort Lauderdale because my
dad has a condo there, and he stays here for the winter.

00:40:40.000 --> 00:40:44.999
And just besides Fort
Lauderdale that was it,

00:40:45.000 --> 00:40:49.999
besides that, you know,

00:40:50.000 --> 00:40:54.999
besides our honeymoon, uh… we did, we like going to the beach,
she like going to the beach. Uh… But they want once we had kids,

00:40:55.000 --> 00:40:59.999
we went to Disney world pretty much every
other year. So we’ve been there quite a bit.

00:41:00.000 --> 00:41:04.999
And I had… that I continue to
do even if we’ve been since

00:41:05.000 --> 00:41:09.999
Tracy’s passed away, we’ve been Disney
world probably packed up in four years.

00:41:10.000 --> 00:41:18.000
[sil.]

00:41:20.000 --> 00:41:24.999
So eight months later. Okay. Yeah.

00:41:25.000 --> 00:41:29.999
[sil.]

00:41:30.000 --> 00:41:34.999
I know this is hard but it’s really
important. Okay. No, I understand.

00:41:35.000 --> 00:41:39.999
Okay, do you want tissue? Yeah.

00:41:40.000 --> 00:41:44.999
I think there might be some
of them in bathroom. Okay.

00:41:45.000 --> 00:41:49.999
[sil.] Animal print tissue box too.

00:41:50.000 --> 00:41:54.999
Yeah, you coordinate all the way out.

00:41:55.000 --> 00:41:59.999
That’s for my African style bathroom.
You match your pillows.

00:42:00.000 --> 00:42:04.999
It’s like… it’s like a theme house. Yeah.

00:42:05.000 --> 00:42:09.999
All right.

00:42:10.000 --> 00:42:14.999
Just tell me when you’re… when you’re…

00:42:15.000 --> 00:42:19.999
Yeah (inaudible). Okay. Are
you able to tell me umm…

00:42:20.000 --> 00:42:24.999
if Tracy had survived the
surgery, what… what do you think

00:42:25.000 --> 00:42:29.999
life was held in store for her?
Where do you think

00:42:30.000 --> 00:42:34.999
you two would have ban what you’ve done?

00:42:35.000 --> 00:42:39.999
If Tracy was alive today,

00:42:40.000 --> 00:42:44.999
life would be perfect.

00:42:45.000 --> 00:42:49.999
And I don’t know what much more to say about. I mean I don’t
think we’d be traveling like all over the world because I don’t,

00:42:50.000 --> 00:42:54.999
I’m not a traveler. I don’t like to fly that much,
but I mean, I spent five weeks in Florida this year,

00:42:55.000 --> 00:42:59.999
and she just want to love that. And like I said before
she would love being outside of the (inaudible)

00:43:00.000 --> 00:43:04.999
she would love this house, and I don’t
know if she would let me do it.

00:43:05.000 --> 00:43:09.999
I know she did like the monkey chandelier.

00:43:10.000 --> 00:43:14.999
I didn’t buy the… until after… but I had looked through a catalog,
and I said, who’s in that core? And she sort of laughed at me.

00:43:15.000 --> 00:43:19.999
Okay. Okay, do you… okay, go ahead.

00:43:20.000 --> 00:43:28.000
[sil.]

00:43:30.000 --> 00:43:34.999
Umm… Kath, did he answered umm… there’s
lies that remind you of Tracy.

00:43:35.000 --> 00:43:39.999
You started to ask and I think
he broke down a little bit.

00:43:40.000 --> 00:43:44.999
And the other one you change the subject
on why all the pictures around?

00:43:45.000 --> 00:43:49.999
Right. Just if you want to go back.

00:43:50.000 --> 00:43:54.999
At 9:30. Umm… so what’s next? She said, what’s next? So
everybody basically who was in the hospital knew anything

00:43:55.000 --> 00:43:59.999
about the event has been deposed? I think that
they’ll eventually look to settle the case.

00:44:00.000 --> 00:44:04.999
Before court. Before Court. We’re
not going to have to tell.

00:44:05.000 --> 00:44:09.999
Well, do you know don’t hold me to opinion, but I think I mean
I’m… I’m sort of cautiously optimistic that umm… another…

00:44:10.000 --> 00:44:14.999
here’s the problem, here’s
the big problem. (inaudible)

00:44:15.000 --> 00:44:19.999
has a clause in his insurance policy

00:44:20.000 --> 00:44:24.999
that says that they can’t sell without his
permission. So he could withhold permission,

00:44:25.000 --> 00:44:29.999
and force the case through
to a trial if he wants to.

00:44:30.000 --> 00:44:34.999
I don’t… I don’t… I don’t know what
he’ll do. Umm… You know, I talked to…

00:44:35.000 --> 00:44:39.999
She just telling what’s going on. Yeah, okay. So what’s
the next step (inaudible) I talk about the (inaudible).

00:44:40.000 --> 00:44:44.999
And so I think… so I think umm… once we disclose
our experts, and once they are deposed,

00:44:45.000 --> 00:44:49.999
meaning he gets a chance to take their
testimony, and find out what their opinions are.

00:44:50.000 --> 00:44:54.999
Then that’s usually the time when somebody says, \"Why don’t
we talk about it? See if we can resolve the case.\" Okay.

00:44:55.000 --> 00:44:59.999
And so I am… which is why I want to do
this because then when I go to that…

00:45:00.000 --> 00:45:04.999
if there is a settlement meeting or mediation whatever… whatever
it is, then we go in rather than me sitting there saying,

00:45:05.000 --> 00:45:09.999
\"She was a beautiful, 33 year old,
mother of two, with a nice husband,

00:45:10.000 --> 00:45:14.999
and a beautiful family.\" And then
I just can put this… this video

00:45:15.000 --> 00:45:19.999
and you know like you guys talk for her. Because think about
it what’s the… what’s the more effective way to do it?

00:45:20.000 --> 00:45:24.999
What does for the most justice? And so this is
better. And these guys do a great job. They will,

00:45:25.000 --> 00:45:29.999
they do it very… you know, it’s high quality professional, and
everything we want in there is in there. So don’t worry about it. Okay.

00:45:30.000 --> 00:45:35.000
[music]

00:45:40.000 --> 00:45:44.999
When Tracy was in the hospital

00:45:45.000 --> 00:45:49.999
uh… there was somewhere near, what, you know, so
obviously someone sometime when she was in a coma,

00:45:50.000 --> 00:45:54.999
but they uh… they put their hand print
on a piece of paper with paint.

00:45:55.000 --> 00:45:59.999
I took those sheets,

00:46:00.000 --> 00:46:04.999
I had words written by my system on, and then
with the song. And it was basically a song

00:46:05.000 --> 00:46:09.999
of someone telling me of the kid that,

00:46:10.000 --> 00:46:14.999
you know, they’ll always be watching out for them, and they’ll always be weather side.
And you know, those important to do so they would know that she was always there.

00:46:15.000 --> 00:46:19.999
Tracy is my younger sister.

00:46:20.000 --> 00:46:24.999
Umm… I’m the oldest, and
she’s the youngest of three.

00:46:25.000 --> 00:46:29.999
She knew from the young age that she wanted
feel London, feel Tracy to be married.

00:46:30.000 --> 00:46:34.999
I went to UK for five years.
So I was there after year

00:46:35.000 --> 00:46:39.999
uh… Tracy died.. And we actually
got engaged prior to me graduate.

00:46:40.000 --> 00:46:44.999
The wedding was entirely… Patty
just stop it for a second.

00:46:45.000 --> 00:46:49.999
I don’t love, I like that part about
him, sort of just the end that,

00:46:50.000 --> 00:46:54.999
I don’t love the first college clip of him.
You want (inaudible) it’s hard

00:46:55.000 --> 00:46:59.999
Yeah. And he ain’t go bars and it just I don’t
think it adds anything. Okay, let’s trigger.

00:47:00.000 --> 00:47:04.999
I like her when her parents
are talking about her,

00:47:05.000 --> 00:47:09.999
or like her sister talking about her. Umm… I think you
can count the five years. So I was there after year.

00:47:10.000 --> 00:47:14.999
And before that. Sorry it went back.

00:47:15.000 --> 00:47:19.999
(inaudible).

00:47:20.000 --> 00:47:24.999
Yeah, everything was perfect.
You look at that,

00:47:25.000 --> 00:47:29.999
I mean they are the perfect
couple, perfect kids.

00:47:30.000 --> 00:47:34.999
Yeah. I think it makes more
sense afterwards but I love

00:47:35.000 --> 00:47:39.999
that and image is really strong.
The other thing is he’s…

00:47:40.000 --> 00:47:44.999
he’s talking in the past tense.
Everything was perfect.

00:47:45.000 --> 00:47:49.999
And then she’s talking about what she’s missing
in the future. So let’s try it before.

00:47:50.000 --> 00:47:54.999
Before, okay.

00:47:55.000 --> 00:47:59.999
And finish on her, and see what happens.
All right so let’s start. That’s it.

00:48:00.000 --> 00:48:04.999
Yeah, that’s it. That was the easy.

00:48:05.000 --> 00:48:10.000
Start out with rigidly good
product and what’s (inaudible).

00:48:15.000 --> 00:48:23.000
[music]

00:48:25.000 --> 00:48:33.000
[sil.]

00:48:45.000 --> 00:48:49.999
Hello. How are you? Good to see you. Welcome
to (inaudible). I know it’s good to be here.

00:48:50.000 --> 00:48:54.999
For me to have been here, and know
what happened here, I’m going to have…

00:48:55.000 --> 00:48:59.999
because it’s not just enough to… to read
about it. If you really want to do your job,

00:49:00.000 --> 00:49:04.999
I think it’s like to have to feel it, and you have to be…
and people say, \"You know, don’t be emotionally involved.\"

00:49:05.000 --> 00:49:09.999
I think it’s really important to be emotionally
involved with especially in a case like this

00:49:10.000 --> 00:49:14.999
so usually when we live by cases
things happen in hospitals,

00:49:15.000 --> 00:49:19.999
and you know, that’s just my way of looking at it. And
uh… how do you feel about this, Leslie? I mean you…

00:49:20.000 --> 00:49:24.999
Well, I don’t know.

00:49:25.000 --> 00:49:29.999
I mean being in the house, and explaining
to everything that happened? Right.

00:49:30.000 --> 00:49:34.999
Well, right after it happened, I mean I moved
out, I couldn’t, I don’t want to be here.

00:49:35.000 --> 00:49:39.999
And then eventually, things change, and
all I want to do was be here. So umm…

00:49:40.000 --> 00:49:44.999
Well, it was post-traumatic syndrome acute, and all… you
couldn’t… when you… initially, you couldn’t come home.

00:49:45.000 --> 00:49:49.999
Yeah, this is where I grew up. since this is my home and I have,
you know, I mean I take showers in the bathroom where he was,

00:49:50.000 --> 00:49:54.999
and I, you know, fall asleep in my parents’ room where she
was killed. So it’s… to me it’s not a scary thing anymore.

00:49:55.000 --> 00:49:59.999
Okay. It’s more this is… this is where
she was. So I’m fine with it. Okay.

00:50:00.000 --> 00:50:04.999
And umm… I like first when
she was right to finding.

00:50:05.000 --> 00:50:09.999
[sil.]

00:50:10.000 --> 00:50:14.999
Come on Julie. And that’s here today, I’m
looking at (inaudible) thinking she comes back.

00:50:15.000 --> 00:50:19.999
We didn’t realize there were no dogs around. I never even…
we were so pre-occupied with everything that’s going on.

00:50:20.000 --> 00:50:24.999
And never even noticed there were no dogs.

00:50:25.000 --> 00:50:29.999
And that’s very unusual because they’re always there.
Oh, my god. And at this angle I see nothing. Right.

00:50:30.000 --> 00:50:34.999
I see nothing. I just see like the two feet of the bathroom.
And she was standing and the door looking like that,

00:50:35.000 --> 00:50:39.999
and after like two seconds of being
here, she just screamed bloody murder

00:50:40.000 --> 00:50:44.999
because at this angle you can see the whole bathroom.
Basically, you can see right end. That’s not a big bathroom.

00:50:45.000 --> 00:50:49.999
Oh, my god. Yeah, I was right there.
So she screamed,

00:50:50.000 --> 00:50:54.999
and looked at me, she’s like backed up, and looked at
me, and said, and she said, \"Get the fuck out of here.\"

00:50:55.000 --> 00:50:59.999
Did she say to you or do…? She looked at me, and she
said \"Get the fuck out of here.\" So I’m looking here,

00:51:00.000 --> 00:51:04.999
and I’m like, I see nothing. All right. I think
my sister is seeing a ghost or something.

00:51:05.000 --> 00:51:09.999
So I sort of just looked at her, and a look on her face, and how
she was I knew that somebody was in the bathroom. All right.

00:51:10.000 --> 00:51:14.999
So I turned away, and right. When I turned, I looked back for a split
second, and I noticed that somebody was coming out of the bathroom,

00:51:15.000 --> 00:51:19.999
but I was… She never saw him in
the bathroom. I saw like I can’t,

00:51:20.000 --> 00:51:24.999
if you would have ask me, \"Did I see Jonathan
coming out of the bathroom? I would say, No.

00:51:25.000 --> 00:51:29.999
I saw something coming out of the bath room, but
I didn’t see him. I didn’t see anything. Mm-mm.

00:51:30.000 --> 00:51:34.999
And when I got to the door, I pushed the door
and the door wasn’t opening, it was stuck.

00:51:35.000 --> 00:51:39.999
So I started to just listen for a second, I heard
nothing. And then I pushed the door really hard,

00:51:40.000 --> 00:51:44.999
and I realized I got the door like this far open, and I looked in and
my sister was on the ground right here, and he was standing right,

00:51:45.000 --> 00:51:49.999
he was standing on the bed just like this. Standing or sitting?
He was standing right over there. He had some stuff on the bed,

00:51:50.000 --> 00:51:54.999
and he had the gun in his hand, and he
looked like he was reloading the gun.

00:51:55.000 --> 00:51:59.999
He had bullets on the bed, and he was
putting bullets in the gun. And…

00:52:00.000 --> 00:52:04.999
Did you’re at that point you saw it was… Oh, it’s hard to
totally. I mean I saw him kill my sister, and I thought he was…

00:52:05.000 --> 00:52:09.999
Because he also… I open up the door he looked right at
me, he didn’t say anything to me, he didn’t go for me,

00:52:10.000 --> 00:52:14.999
he just stood there and he
just kept reloading his gun.

00:52:15.000 --> 00:52:19.999
So I slammed the door, and ran down the street,
and ran right into my neighbor’s house,

00:52:20.000 --> 00:52:24.999
and my take out many of those houses he looked out the window, and he was
well, I got right to where the circle is in the middle of the street,

00:52:25.000 --> 00:52:29.999
and I’m trying to around, Jonathan was running out of the
house after me. Yeah, that’s sort of what I’m gonna ask,

00:52:30.000 --> 00:52:34.999
maybe afterwards we look at this one. This
is her room, but I don’t think (inaudible).

00:52:35.000 --> 00:52:39.999
[sil.]

00:52:40.000 --> 00:52:44.999
Come on Charlie. See if you could talk, you
could tell everybody what happened. Yeah.

00:52:45.000 --> 00:52:53.000
[sil.]

00:52:55.000 --> 00:52:59.999
And where was Jonathan standing
while you were running (inaudible).

00:53:00.000 --> 00:53:04.999
He was coming (inaudible). Walking?
No, he was jogging on the front lawn.

00:53:05.000 --> 00:53:09.999
Okay, not running, jogging. I mean… When I…
when I had… I only looked at him for a second,

00:53:10.000 --> 00:53:14.999
when I saw him he was, you know, the he was flung the
front door open, and he was trotting down the front lawn.

00:53:15.000 --> 00:53:19.999
Yeah. So I mean it didn’t look like he was… Like he was chasing. It didn’t
look like he was… a kind of looked like he didn’t really know was going on,

00:53:20.000 --> 00:53:24.999
and I don’t know what’s going on, but I
knew that I didn’t want to be there.

00:53:25.000 --> 00:53:29.999
So umm… but when I had gotten into the… I
gotten into the house, and I looked through

00:53:30.000 --> 00:53:34.999
this window right up here, and I looked through the front
window is when I saw him, and he was looking around.

00:53:35.000 --> 00:53:39.999
How… how is a hard… hard question,

00:53:40.000 --> 00:53:44.999
tough question but how long Elizabeth
was alive after seeing Jonathan?

00:53:45.000 --> 00:53:49.999
Because that’s another
thing I have to establish.

00:53:50.000 --> 00:53:54.999
Anyway, it doesn’t have to be doing like a
time not necessarily like to the second

00:53:55.000 --> 00:53:59.999
or anything but just… so that I can…

00:54:00.000 --> 00:54:04.999
I can explain to somebody, what
she… what she… Well, I think…

00:54:05.000 --> 00:54:09.999
Well, when will her last, you know as antim
before her death as her last moments of life

00:54:10.000 --> 00:54:14.999
were are something that the jury
looks at in-terms of evaluate her.

00:54:15.000 --> 00:54:19.999
I think clearly based on feet in the room. Yeah. She went from A to B somehow, and
she thought she was shot six or seven times. And she was shot in the hand for…

00:54:20.000 --> 00:54:24.999
She was shot, I mean they gave us, I don’t need. Now
they said this because they first saw is the hand where

00:54:25.000 --> 00:54:29.999
umm… when somebody, somebody points a gun at
you, your first thing is to pull up your hand.

00:54:30.000 --> 00:54:34.999
Oh, I see. So these are the first… first and bullet
that come through the hand and into her shoulder.

00:54:35.000 --> 00:54:39.999
And then from there they said they went
down the list of where each one us…

00:54:40.000 --> 00:54:44.999
I can find out from there. But umm… I was just in
terms of what you heard though in terms of the shots,

00:54:45.000 --> 00:54:49.999
but if maybe… maybe… I can’t.

00:54:50.000 --> 00:54:54.999
But if you put it together by figuring it out, but
so it’s probably, it’s less than a minute, I’m sure.

00:54:55.000 --> 00:54:59.999
I would like to think it’s
less than two seconds.

00:55:00.000 --> 00:55:04.999
Yeah, during pulling the door.

00:55:05.000 --> 00:55:09.999
He’s arrested, he’s brought to the Newington Police Department. He’s
uh… giving a confession. He’s waived his rights, no issue there.

00:55:10.000 --> 00:55:14.999
Umm… he says as part of his confession,
\"On and off, since February,

00:55:15.000 --> 00:55:19.999
I’ve have thought about killing myself. About a month
ago, I tried to kill myself with a dose of insulin.

00:55:20.000 --> 00:55:24.999
I have also thought about killing myself with a
gun. Sometimes, I would think about killing Lizzie

00:55:25.000 --> 00:55:29.999
when she would say mean things to me.
I have been seeing a counselor,

00:55:30.000 --> 00:55:34.999
and a psychiatrist for about a month at
the Newingtont hospital past services.

00:55:35.000 --> 00:55:39.999
Dr Paulson is the psychiatrist and
the counselor was (inaudible).

00:55:40.000 --> 00:55:44.999
I told them about my thoughts
of killing Lizzie, and myself.

00:55:45.000 --> 00:55:49.999
And then it says, \"My primary care doctor uh… and
later Dr. Paulson prescribes Zolosoft for me.

00:55:50.000 --> 00:55:54.999
Initially was for obsessive compulsive
behavior, and later for depression,

00:55:55.000 --> 00:55:59.999
took my… And it goes on. So
that forms the basis of us,

00:56:00.000 --> 00:56:04.999
of our belief that this is
a (inaudible) case where

00:56:05.000 --> 00:56:09.999
umm… the psychiatrist would have a
duty to warn, or prevent this murder.

00:56:10.000 --> 00:56:14.999
And I suppose part of it’s going to murder
of a known uh… of a known individuals.

00:56:15.000 --> 00:56:19.999
Right. Part of it depend, I mean all of it’s
going to depend on exactly what he told them.

00:56:20.000 --> 00:56:24.999
Did he say, \"I’m going to…
I intend to kill Lizzie

00:56:25.000 --> 00:56:29.999
or I have.\" They dreamed about it.
Well, (inaudible).

00:56:30.000 --> 00:56:34.999
Or I have a present and I tend to, I
keep getting more and more, you know,

00:56:35.000 --> 00:56:39.999
what is… what is… what did he tell him? Do we know? There’s no… we
only know what he told them through him, through this. This statement,

00:56:40.000 --> 00:56:44.999
and the uh… police officer has been deposed

00:56:45.000 --> 00:56:49.999
who completely signed on that
these were his words. Right.

00:56:50.000 --> 00:56:54.999
What’s interesting about this case although you would think you it would
hurt that he pled guilty, and everything, it really doesn’t matter.

00:56:55.000 --> 00:56:59.999
In fact, it sort of helps
that he… he was not insane.

00:57:00.000 --> 00:57:04.999
He said he was going to kill Lizzie to a psychiatrist whether
he was crazy or not that’s what triggers their obligation,

00:57:05.000 --> 00:57:09.999
the nature of the threat, not,

00:57:10.000 --> 00:57:14.999
you know, not whether it’s crazy or not. Suppose
there’s, let’s… let’s fast forward to the trial.

00:57:15.000 --> 00:57:19.999
Right. Are you saying, did you say that
the defense psychiatrist’s lawyer?

00:57:20.000 --> 00:57:24.999
Are you saying that your client is
not going to say anything about

00:57:25.000 --> 00:57:29.999
what this man told him? In other words,
if we can introduce into evidence…

00:57:30.000 --> 00:57:34.999
Right. That’s the best argument
if we introduce into evidence

00:57:35.000 --> 00:57:39.999
the fact that he told the police,
he told the psychiatrist,

00:57:40.000 --> 00:57:44.999
he was going to kill her, are you telling us the
psychiatrist is not going to commit and deny it?

00:57:45.000 --> 00:57:49.999
You got to get the records. See it then it does sound like a (inaudible)
on their part said he would like to give you the records, but…

00:57:50.000 --> 00:57:54.999
I think there’s going to be something in there. I
don’t think it’s going to be what. It’s not going to…

00:57:55.000 --> 00:57:59.999
It’s not going to be a block. It’s not going to be a smoking gun. There’s
not a psychiatrist with (inaudible). He said he’s going to kill Lizzie,

00:58:00.000 --> 00:58:04.999
exclamation must tell must tell family. Right. What
must tell the family when I return from the Caribbean.

00:58:05.000 --> 00:58:09.999
You know that’s the… That’s the idea.
(inaudible) under Tarasoff doctrine.

00:58:10.000 --> 00:58:15.000
Yeah.

00:58:20.000 --> 00:58:24.999
Is Joshua there? Josh is
back there or not. Uh… okay.

00:58:25.000 --> 00:58:33.000
[sil.]

00:58:35.000 --> 00:58:39.999
What’s happening with the trial? Let’s go, (inaudible).
All right. Uh… It’s gonna catch you up on all that stuff.

00:58:40.000 --> 00:58:44.999
I think negotiations are over.

00:58:45.000 --> 00:58:49.999
I’m not sure, but I got a call. Are you…
are you… have you got a couple of minutes?

00:58:50.000 --> 00:58:54.999
Yeah. I got one, I got to go.
I got a brief (inaudible)

00:58:55.000 --> 00:58:59.999
but I got to finish by tomorrow.

00:59:00.000 --> 00:59:04.999
Anyway umm… but my idea with a 50
is I don’t particularly like it.

00:59:05.000 --> 00:59:09.999
Be fun to try to case. But I
got… I got to tell the client,

00:59:10.000 --> 00:59:14.999
you know, I know what your chances… This is what
I would tell a client. I think it’s 50 figure.

00:59:15.000 --> 00:59:19.999
Will you willing to… It’s up to you. Are
you willing to risk 850 which means

00:59:20.000 --> 00:59:24.999
whatever 550 for you guys. Umm…

00:59:25.000 --> 00:59:29.999
for this trial because I’m telling you that’s
the 50-50 share. I would love to try this case.

00:59:30.000 --> 00:59:34.999
Umm… I think if I won,
I’ll get more than 850,

00:59:35.000 --> 00:59:39.999
but obviously, if we lose, we’ll get zero,

00:59:40.000 --> 00:59:44.999
and it’s not my money it’s yours.

00:59:45.000 --> 00:59:49.999
[sil.]

00:59:50.000 --> 00:59:54.999
Hi, Linda. Hi, Craig. How are you? Okay.

00:59:55.000 --> 00:59:59.999
Good. Umm… sorry, I called so late. Is
it an okay time for you? Yes, fine.

01:00:00.000 --> 01:00:04.999
Oh, good, okay. As one of the
fellows around here said that,

01:00:05.000 --> 01:00:09.999
you know, it’s not anything to…
it’s not like selling the case out

01:00:10.000 --> 01:00:14.999
uh… to settle for that much. The judge’s take on
it today was that’s a good settlement figure,

01:00:15.000 --> 01:00:19.999
and you know, you really need to
sit down, and think hard about it.

01:00:20.000 --> 01:00:24.999
My opinion on it is it’s still low.

01:00:25.000 --> 01:00:29.999
Umm… But it’s not unreasonable.

01:00:30.000 --> 01:00:34.999
The point is umm… you know, the money that
they’re offering you is an offer to you,

01:00:35.000 --> 01:00:39.999
it’s your money. And you’re the one
that ought to make the decisions

01:00:40.000 --> 01:00:44.999
with regard to what you want to do. And
those decisions should be practical ones.

01:00:45.000 --> 01:00:49.999
They should be decisions based on, you know,
what are the real chances of winning?

01:00:50.000 --> 01:00:54.999
How much do you need the money? Are there
things that you could be doing with that money?

01:00:55.000 --> 01:00:59.999
And again, you’ve got to figure out
how much you’re going to actually

01:01:00.000 --> 01:01:04.999
put in your pocket out of that
amount and we can estimate that?

01:01:05.000 --> 01:01:09.999
Umm… And… and if you’d like
it, I can do that for you.

01:01:10.000 --> 01:01:14.999
Out of $850,000, our fee
would be about $283,000.

01:01:15.000 --> 01:01:19.999
But that would be approximately add.
So let’s figure that $284,000.

01:01:20.000 --> 01:01:24.999
So that leaves you, umm… you
would walk away with probably,

01:01:25.000 --> 01:01:29.999
and again, don’t hold me to these
numbers because I’m terrible at math.

01:01:30.000 --> 01:01:34.999
But I’m thinking it’s about
$500,000 would go to you

01:01:35.000 --> 01:01:39.999
or actually to the estate. For me the life
time of income. I don’t make that same money.

01:01:40.000 --> 01:01:44.999
Yeah.

01:01:45.000 --> 01:01:49.999
And you know, like I said,
it could be million dollars,

01:01:50.000 --> 01:01:54.999
it could be $2 million dollars,
if it could be whatever,

01:01:55.000 --> 01:01:59.999
but my heart or it’s not going
to change my life and all

01:02:00.000 --> 01:02:04.999
because my biggest loss was losing my husband.
Yes, ma’am. And nothing, you know, no price,

01:02:05.000 --> 01:02:09.999
nothing can put a value
on a human being’s life.

01:02:10.000 --> 01:02:14.999
And it’s a little bit of justice
that I’m not getting with this case.

01:02:15.000 --> 01:02:19.999
(inaudible) I just wish
people would say the truth

01:02:20.000 --> 01:02:24.999
and speak the truth, what could happen.

01:02:25.000 --> 01:02:29.999
I told every one to find out what could happen on that day.
The comment she made to me was something that rang home

01:02:30.000 --> 01:02:34.999
with me because I kind of think that way. She said
that’s more money than I’ve ever had in my life.

01:02:35.000 --> 01:02:39.999
And she’s like, but it won’t really change my life in the sense that
it won’t, you know, it’s like, \"I won’t bring my husband back.\"

01:02:40.000 --> 01:02:44.999
But she said, but if it were to my boss it wouldn’t change my
life either. Yeah, it’s just 20 million (inaudible). It was uh…

01:02:45.000 --> 01:02:49.999
Well, 20 million. That might…

01:02:50.000 --> 01:02:54.999
Well, it’s gonna change your life, but it’s not going to
make it better than it would have been, you know. Yeah.

01:02:55.000 --> 01:02:59.999
There’s a thing if someone did a study
about, maybe this is an end David Ball,

01:03:00.000 --> 01:03:04.999
I forgot about him, medical
malpractice case. No.

01:03:05.000 --> 01:03:09.999
No, no, it’s in… it’s in uh… well, I figure out it. Anyway, oh, yeah,
it’s in Blink. Did you read Blink? No. It’s a book, terrific book.

01:03:10.000 --> 01:03:14.999
And they did a study, you can tell which
doctors were more likely to be sued

01:03:15.000 --> 01:03:19.999
by malpractice based upon a 15 minute
conversation with their patients,

01:03:20.000 --> 01:03:24.999
and it has everything to do with umm… taking
responsibility for things explaining,

01:03:25.000 --> 01:03:29.999
brings up (inaudible) and… and starting
and the end of life studies (inaudible)

01:03:30.000 --> 01:03:34.999
doctors apologize if they won’t get sued. You could have
the meanest, most malpracticing doctor in the world,

01:03:35.000 --> 01:03:39.999
and apologizes are not going to get sued. You can
have a total asshole who didn’t commit malpractise.

01:03:40.000 --> 01:03:44.999
Yeah, I know they’ll get sued all the time.
What are you doing here until now?

01:03:45.000 --> 01:03:49.999
You’ve never worked past five years in
your life. What do you mean? (inaudible).

01:03:50.000 --> 01:03:58.000
[sil.]

01:04:00.000 --> 01:04:04.999
Well, well, tomorrow’s not the worst trying
to go in first thing (inaudible) 1.4,

01:04:05.000 --> 01:04:09.999
and say that’s it or you would say
by my 1.4. What do they think 1.5?

01:04:10.000 --> 01:04:14.999
I would say 1.4 and if it’s a penny less, I’m
going up. Hold on. Or maybe, I will just go down.

01:04:15.000 --> 01:04:19.999
I might just go in and say, look,

01:04:20.000 --> 01:04:24.999
you know, you guys moved to
$100,000, or all my $100,000.

01:04:25.000 --> 01:04:29.999
Yeah.

01:04:30.000 --> 01:04:34.999
Good morning, Mr. Morris. Linda Morris. Hi,
it’s Linda (inaudible) the Koskoff’s office.

01:04:35.000 --> 01:04:39.999
How are you? Good, thanks.
How are you doing? Okay.

01:04:40.000 --> 01:04:44.999
I was calling to let you know that we have you a
cheque ready for your share of the settlement.

01:04:45.000 --> 01:04:49.999
You remember we divided the settlement into two
parts, and we have one half for the estate,

01:04:50.000 --> 01:04:54.999
and then one half is for
you, individually. Okay.

01:04:55.000 --> 01:04:59.999
So your share is ready, and we can
get that to you, one day, next week.

01:05:00.000 --> 01:05:04.999
The share going to the state is still
going through the probate process.

01:05:05.000 --> 01:05:09.999
Remember, those papers
that you signed with the

01:05:10.000 --> 01:05:14.999
umm… description of where all the funds, the
source of the funds, and where they’re going.

01:05:15.000 --> 01:05:19.999
The probate court has to approve that. Okay. So once
they approve that then we will distribute to you

01:05:20.000 --> 01:05:24.999
as executive of the estate. Okay.

01:05:25.000 --> 01:05:29.999
But for now we can distribute the money
to you that’s your share individually.

01:05:30.000 --> 01:05:34.999
Okay. All right. Would it be nailing that?
Well, I thought maybe you come in,

01:05:35.000 --> 01:05:39.999
and pick it up. It is over $270,000. I hate
to put a cheque like that in the mail.

01:05:40.000 --> 01:05:44.999
Okay.

01:05:45.000 --> 01:05:49.999
Yeah, come on, in. Look, who’s here Craig?
Hi. Hi, Craig, how are you?

01:05:50.000 --> 01:05:54.999
(inaudible) I tell you. You
to decide this stuff by.

01:05:55.000 --> 01:05:59.999
And this is just my letter
to you saying, Good luck.

01:06:00.000 --> 01:06:04.999
Umm… And this is the cheque. And read this.

01:06:05.000 --> 01:06:09.999
And this is what we call a settlement statement. I think you’ve
seen this before, but I’ll go over it with you one more time.

01:06:10.000 --> 01:06:14.999
This is the total amount, and again this is
just the money that goes to you individually

01:06:15.000 --> 01:06:19.999
uh… which is $425,000.

01:06:20.000 --> 01:06:24.999
The attorney’s fees out of that which
I think are 1/3rd of the total,

01:06:25.000 --> 01:06:29.999
equal $141,0525. These uh…
disbursements are the amount of…

01:06:30.000 --> 01:06:34.999
Old case of firm cancel (inaudible).the
long slips and the marks

01:06:35.000 --> 01:06:39.999
that show that the guy had bleeding. And so
they never worked him up for colon cancer.

01:06:40.000 --> 01:06:44.999
By the time he was diagnosed several years
later, he had a massive colon cancer

01:06:45.000 --> 01:06:49.999
that had gone to his liver. Right. And he
went to Sloan Kettering. They told him,

01:06:50.000 --> 01:06:54.999
he was going to die within six months. So
he quit his job at this figure counting

01:06:55.000 --> 01:06:59.999
for (inaudible) settlement, the last six
months of my life down the Caribbean.

01:07:00.000 --> 01:07:04.999
So he went down to the Bahamas, he went
down to the Bahamas. And year went by…

01:07:05.000 --> 01:07:09.999
… Four years go but five years
go by, he runs out of money.

01:07:10.000 --> 01:07:14.999
He comes back, and he comes
back to (inaudible).

01:07:15.000 --> 01:07:19.999
Well, we don’t know what happens.
You permit me I (inaudible).

01:07:20.000 --> 01:07:24.999
(inaudible) $950,000.

01:07:25.000 --> 01:07:30.000
[music]