BELLEVILLE – St. Clair County jurors awarded $500,000 to Darren Vines on a malpractice claim against surgeon Aaron Greenspan on Feb. 27, half for disability and half for pain and suffering.
They found Greenspan’s failure to change an anesthesia method caused contents of Vines’s stomach to enter his lungs.
Circuit Judge Heinz Rudolf entered judgment on the verdict.
Steve Stone of Marion represented Vines, who claimed Greenspan refused a nurse’s correct advice at an esophagus operation in 2016.
Stone claimed in a statement of the case prior to trial that Greenspan performed a procedure entering the mouth with a scope to access and treat conditions.
He claimed Greenspan used anesthesia that puts a patient to sleep but does not use a breathing tube.
“Darren Vines alleges that just after the procedure began, a member of the anesthesia team saw contents in Darren Vines’s stomach and asked Dr. Greenspan three or four times to allow them to place a breathing tube to protect Darren Vines’s lungs from the stomach contents,” he wrote.
Stone claimed Vines suffered respiratory failure, cardiac distress, hypoxia, and the consequences of these conditions.
His witness list identified Darren Vines, Jennifer Vines, doctors, a nurse, and eyewitness Michon Coates, a nurse with a doctorate degree.
Trial started on Feb. 21 with jury selection and opening statements from Stone and defense counsel Untress Quinn and Corey Stegeman of the Armstrong Teasdale firm.
Coates and three doctors testified for Vines by video deposition on Feb. 22, and a fourth doctor testified on Feb. 23.
Jennifer and Darren Vines testified and rested their case.
Quinn and Stegeman moved for directed verdict, claiming Vines failed to present any evidence of a breach of duty and Greenspan met the standard of care in all respects.
Rudolf denied the motion, and Greenspan testified on Feb. 24.
Jurors heard final testimony from physician Michael Burns on Feb. 27, and the defense rested.
Jurors heard closing arguments and deliberated three hours and 26 minutes before returning a $500,000 verdict.