Opinion
# 2017-031-508 Claim No. 121300
11-13-2017
MARLON BARRY v. THE STATE OF NEW YORK
MARLON BARRY, PRO SE HON. ERIC T. SCHNEIDERMAN New York State Attorney General BY: RAY A. KYLES, ESQ. Assistant Attorney General
Synopsis
While Claimant failed to demonstrate medical malpractice, or that his injury was exacerbated by Defendant's delay in providing treatment, Claimant had to endure an extra 5 days of pain and suffering due to Defendant's delay in treating Claimant's torn Achilles tendon. Claimant awarded $200.00.
Case information
| UID: | 2017-031-508 |
| Claimant(s): | MARLON BARRY |
| Claimant short name: | BARRY |
| Footnote (claimant name) : | |
| Defendant(s): | THE STATE OF NEW YORK |
| Footnote (defendant name) : | |
| Third-party claimant(s): | |
| Third-party defendant(s): | |
| Claim number(s): | 121300 |
| Motion number(s): | |
| Cross-motion number(s): | |
| Judge: | RENÉE FORGENSI MINARIK |
| Claimant's attorney: | MARLON BARRY, PRO SE |
| Defendant's attorney: | HON. ERIC T. SCHNEIDERMAN New York State Attorney General BY: RAY A. KYLES, ESQ. Assistant Attorney General |
| Third-party defendant's attorney: | |
| Signature date: | November 13, 2017 |
| City: | Rochester |
| Comments: | |
| Official citation: | |
| Appellate results: | |
| See also (multicaptioned case) |
Decision
Claimant Marlon Barry, an inmate confined at Auburn Correctional Facility (Auburn) at all relevant times, filed claim number 121300 on May 14, 2012, alleging that he was denied proper medical care between May 16, 2010 and May 21, 2010. I conducted the video-assisted trial of this matter on October 4, 2017.
Claimant testified that, on May 16, 2010, while participating in a game of soccer during a recreation period, he heard a pop and felt incredible pain in his left foot and ankle. He immediately sought medical treatment and was seen by a nurse employed at Auburn. He stated that the nurse performed only a very cursory examination and gave him ibuprofen and a bandage. Claimant continued to suffer great pain, however, and he saw another nurse the next day, May 17, 2010. He testified that this nurse refused to even examine the injury and told him he was not getting an x-ray. It wasn't until later, on May 21, 2010, that the medical providers at Auburn finally provided him with the proper attention and he was diagnosed with a torn Achilles tendon which required surgery. He had the surgery on June 4, 2010.
Claimant's testimony and exhibits adequately demonstrated that Defendant failed to provide timely medical care for his injury.
Defendant called no witnesses in defense of this claim and Claimant's testimony concerning the basic facts underlying his claim are uncontradicted.
It is well settled that the State has a duty to provide reasonable and adequate medical care, including to the inmates of its correctional facilities (Rivers v State of New York, 159 AD2d 788 [3d Dept 1990], lv denied 76 NY2d 701 [1990]). The State may be cast in liability for injuries that result because its physicians fail to use ordinary and reasonable care or to exercise their best judgment in applying the knowledge and skill ordinarily possessed by practitioners in the field (Hale v State of New York, 53 AD2d 1025 [4th Dept 1976], lv denied 40 NY2d 804 [1976]). Claimant failed to demonstrate medical malpractice. To sustain this burden, Claimant must have presented expert testimony that his injuries were exacerbated by Defendant's week-long delay in providing him proper treatment, and that Defendant's conduct constituted a deviation from the requisite standard of care (Sachs v State of New York, 143 AD3d 1291 [4th Dept 2016]).
However, a cause of action sounding in medical negligence, in essence, alleges negligent omissions or commissions by State caregivers which can be readily determined without the necessity of expert testimony (Friedmann v New York Hosp.-Cornell Med. Ctr., 65 AD3d 850, 851 [1st Dept 2009]).
Upon the record before me in this matter, I find that Claimant was credible and that his testimony was uncontradicted. Claimant has demonstrated that Defendant negligently failed to provide him with timely medical care. Claimant was forced to endure five days of pain and suffering with his injury due to this failure.
I hereby award Claimant the sum of $200.00 for his injuries. To the extent that Claimant has paid a filing fee, it may be recovered pursuant to Court of Claims Act § 11-a (2).
Any and all motions on which the Court may have previously reserved decision, or which were not previously determined, are hereby denied.
LET JUDGMENT BE ENTERED ACCORDINGLY.
November 13, 2017
Rochester, New York
RENÉE FORGENSI MINARIK
Judge of the Court of Claims