Twila Halter, individually and as Guardian ad Litem for James Glass, James Glass v. California Autism Foundation, Mistletoe House, et al.
Published: Jun. 1, 2005 | Result Date: Feb. 2, 2005 | Filing Date: Jan. 1, 1900 |Case number: 02043194 Bench Decision – $144,583
Judge
Court
Alameda Superior
Attorneys
Plaintiff
Kathryn A. Stebner
(Stebner, Gertler, Guadagni & Kawamoto)
Kirsten M. Fish
(Needham, Kepner & Fish LLP)
Defendant
Experts
Plaintiff
Carol R. Hyland M.A.
(technical)
Henri Montandon
(medical)
Stephen Berthelson
(medical)
Kathleen Campbell
(medical)
Phillip H. Allman III, Ph.D.
(technical)
Defendant
Mark Kimmel
(medical)
Margaret Schliessman
(technical)
Keffa Natafuji
(technical)
Baer I. Rambach
(medical)
Andrew M. O'Brien
(technical)
Neil S. Kostick
(medical)
Jeff Nagafuji
(technical)
Laura Brodrick
(medical)
Laura Broderick
(technical)
Facts
Plaintiff James Glass was a 44-year-old man who was developmentally disabled and required around-the-clock care. The plaintiff lived in a house with three similarly-situated adults in Hayward. Defendant California Autism Foundation (CAF) provided the staff who cared for the residents. In May 2002, the plaintiff had a verbal altercation with one of his housemates. A CAF staff member tried to redirect the plaintiff by taking him outside to go to the store. When the plaintiff got outside and saw that he had no money in his wallet, he ran back to the house. The plaintiff then pushed his left arm through a pane of glass in the front door, severely injuring his hand.
Settlement Discussions
The plaintiffs offered to settle the case for $750,000 prior to trial. The defendants had offered $37,500, would pay more if the plaintiff would reduced the demand; the plaintiffs refused.
Damages
The plaintiff's sister sought reimbursement for providing Glass with lifetime 24-hour care following the incident. The plaintiffs sought $2.5 to $3.5 million in damages.
Injuries
The plaintiff suffered muscle and tendon lacerations that made his hand 80 percent disabled.
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