Reed v. County of San Bernardino Child Protective Services

Negligence

San Bernardino County

Superior Court Judge Bryan F. Foster

$113.4 million

Plaintiff's lawyers: The Vartazarian Law Firm, Steven R. Vartazarian, Matthew J. Whibley

Defense lawyers: Dolen, Tucker, Popka & Abraham, Raymond F. Dolen; San Bernardino County Counsel's office, Blakney A. Boggs

The latest judgment was filed in December, but Steven Vartazarian is still baffled. How did a multi-million dollar verdict rendered in his client's favor get overturned only a few months after the initial trial - and by the same judge?

"I tried the cleanest case that I've ever tried," the plaintiff's attorney said of the summer trial. "There was zero turbulence, there were no motions for mistrial, there was no allegation that I had engaged in any kind of misconduct or made improper arguments."

"It was textbook exemplary," add Vartazarian, a partner at the Vartazarian Law Firm.

The evidence in the case was largely undisputed, according to the judge's ruling. Vartazarian represented Laurell Reed, the mother of a minor who had been physically abused by his father's girlfriend. Reed v. County of San Bernardino Children and Family Services, CIVDS1416377 (S.B. Super. Ct., filed Oct. 29, 2014).

The girlfriend was convicted of child endangerment and sentenced to 15 years in prison, but Reed's son continues to suffer as a result of the abuse. "He suffered a severe and significant brain injury," Vartazarian said, adding that the child would be in "a wheelchair for the rest of his life. He has difficulty speaking, doing anything on his own, he can't see out of his right eye... he'll never walk again, he'll never work or do anything productive. He needs 24 hours of care for the rest of his life."

The key question in the case concerned whether or not a social worker employee of the defendant, the San Bernardino Children and Family Services, failed to perform her mandatory duties when she interviewed Reed's son, his father, and his girlfriend following complaints the minor was being abused, and decided to close his case instead of pursuing further protections for the minor.

Last summer, a jury found the social worker failed to perform her duties and therefore played a substantial role in causing harm to the minor. Judge Bryan F. Foster ordered the San Bernardino Children and Family Services to compensate the plaintiff in the amount of $13,402,625.66 in economic damages and 85% of $100 million in non-economic damages.

The defendant filed motions for a new trial and judgment notwithstanding the verdict. Judge Foster rendered a new judgment in December, which overturned the verdict and ruled in favor of the defendant. Reed now owes the County of San Bernardino the costs of suit.

"It's as if the [judge] is talking about a completely different case when we got to the hearing on defendant's motion for a new trial," Vartazarian said. "He started questioning us about the standard that we have to prove, which is something we had gone over during the entire trial and before the trial and during the motion for summary judgment."

"That caught us totally off guard," he added. David Wert, a spokesperson for San Bernardino County, said county counsel secured the judgment notwithstanding the verdict without changing the argument it stood by all along: that the county was immune from the litigation.

"We can only assume that following a lengthy jury trial, this judge was no longer convinced that a legitimate issue of fact remained and appropriately granted the judgment notwithstanding the verdict, acknowledging immunity," Wert said in an email. Vartazarian asked an appellate court to review the judgment back in December.

Raymond Dolen of Dolen, Tucker, Popka & Abraham, who also represented the defendant said "nothing has been briefed yet" regarding the appeal.

-- Jessica Mach