Half-hourly checks that never happened and a breathing machine nobody replaced
A broken breathing machine, doorway-only checks, and a missed filing deadline added up to a $10 million verdict a care provider cannot escape.
The Connecticut Appellate Court on September 15 affirmed the award against the Connecticut Institute for the Blind, doing business as Oak Hill. The appeal failed not on the facts but on a procedural misstep that left no grounds the court could review.
Oak Hill operates intermediate care facilities for individuals with disabilities across Connecticut. The resident lived at one of those facilities from September 2015 until his death on May 23, 2016. He relied on a BiPAP breathing machine every night for sleep apnea. Oak Hill's own care guidelines required staff to check on him "throughout the night at least every half hour" to confirm the mask was on, the tubing was clear, and he was breathing.
The machine had been malfunctioning since mid-April 2016. After an inspection on May 19, the equipment supplier said it needed replacing within the week. It was not replaced.
On the night of May 22, staff helped the resident put on his mask around 9 p.m. But the half-hourly checks did not happen. Between 11 p.m. and 4 a.m., staff looked into his room from the doorway without verifying whether he was breathing or the mask was secure.
At 4 a.m., an employee found him unresponsive - and did not start CPR or call an ambulance. A second employee arrived at 4:21 a.m., removed the mask, and called police. The two moved the resident to the floor and began CPR only after that. He was pronounced dead at 4:38 a.m. The machine's internal chip recorded no data overnight.
A jury in March 2024 found Oak Hill's negligence and reckless disregard of the resident's rights under Connecticut's patients' bill of rights statute caused his death, awarding $4 million in noneconomic damages and $6 million in punitive damages.
Oak Hill appealed. The appellate court never reached the merits. Under Connecticut's rules, a defendant must file a written motion to set aside a verdict within 10 days. Oak Hill filed nothing. Its counsel had verbally reminded the trial judge of a pending directed verdict motion after the jury came back. The judge acknowledged it. That oral exchange, the court held, did not substitute for a written filing.
Every remaining argument - that the punitive damages claims were time-barred, barred by the wrongful death statute, or based on improper vicarious liability - was dismissed as inadequately briefed or not properly preserved.
