Location: Woodbridge, Virginia
Verdict: $500,000
The plaintiff was a patient admitted to the telemetry unit of Sentara Northern Virginia Hospital in Woodbridge, Virginia. She was receiving treatment for sepsis and lymphadenopathy.
During her week-long hospitalization, she came under the care of a male registered nurse who sexually assaulted her by touching her breast and vagina. The incident was reported the following day and was promptly escalated to the Director of Patient Care, who suspended the nurse with pay pending an internal investigation.
Although the nurse maintained that the incident never occurred, he was subsequently terminated from Sentara. The plaintiff brought suit under a battery cause of action in Prince William Circuit Court for the embarrassment, humiliation, and indignity associated with the unwanted touching.
The case was hotly contested in a six-day jury trial. The defendant was represented by Andrew Bodoh with Thomas H. Roberts & Associates. In just over two hours, the jury returned a plaintiff’s verdict for $500,000.
