Franklyn Neter-Nu, a truck driver, filed a medical negligence lawsuit after complications from an improperly administered IV led to a below-the-knee amputation. The case originated from a 2015 visit to Methodist Hospital in Gary, Indiana, where Neter-Nu sought treatment for nausea and vomiting.
During his hospital stay, Nurse Morgan Mittler noticed that the IV line had become detached from Neter-Nu’s arm on two occasions. Without physician authorization and despite lacking proper training, she inserted the IV into his right foot. Neter-Nu later reported significant pain in that foot, but after an x-ray revealed no abnormalities, he was discharged.
Soon after traveling to Iowa, Neter-Nu sought emergency care when his toes began turning black. Ultimately, his condition required a below-the-knee amputation.
Neter-Nu brought a negligence claim against Dr. Zainab Abbas, Nurse Mittler, and Methodist Hospital. A jury awarded him $11 million, later reduced to Indiana’s statutory cap of $1.25 million, along with $79,993.40 in prejudgment interest.
The case was appealed, and the Indiana Court of Appeals reversed the jury verdict, citing multiple trial errors, including improper denial of Methodist’s Rule 50(A) motion, flawed jury instructions, and evidentiary issues. The court ordered a new trial.
However, the Indiana Supreme Court partially reinstated the jury’s decision, finding that although the trial court had erred in some aspects, including jury instructions and the Rule 50(A) motion, these errors did not warrant overturning the entire verdict due to the doctrine of joint-and-several liability. The Supreme Court further held that the trial court was within its discretion to exclude certain medical records and internal emails and to deny proposed jury instructions regarding superseding cause and hindsight bias.
The high court affirmed the jury’s findings on liability and damages but remanded the case to the trial court to grant Methodist’s Rule 50(A) motion and to recalculate prejudgment interest in line with the providers’ statutory liability limits.
