Defendant's Attorney: M. Duane Jones, Michael S. Rothrock and Linda Stephens
Description: Greenville, North Carolina personal injury lawyers represented Plaintiffs, who sued Defendant on a negligence theory.
On 29 September 2016, plaintiffs Thomas and Teresa Keith (Mr. and Mrs.
Keith), an elderly married couple with health and mobility issues, were the victims
of a home invasion and armed robbery orchestrated by a personal care aide working
for defendant Health-Pro Home Care Services, Inc. (Health-Pro). The aide, Deitra
Clark, was assigned to assist the Keiths in their home. Clark subsequently pleaded
guilty to first-degree burglary and second-degree kidnapping for her conduct.
In December 2016, the Keiths sued Health-Pro for negligence and punitive
damages. The Keiths alleged that they hired Health-Pro as their in-home health care
provider and “[d]espite Deitra Clark’s criminal record, lack of a driver’s license, and
history of prior incidents [of suspected prior thefts from the Keiths’ home], Health-
Pro negligently allowed Deitra Clark to provide in-home care to the Keiths, and
Health-Pro’s conduct in assigning Deitra Clark to these responsibilities, as opposed
to some other position in the company, was a proximate cause of the robbery of the
Keiths and the consequent injuries sustained by them.”
Outcome: The jury found Mr. Keith entitled to recover $500,000 in damages from Heath-Pro for his personal injuries and found Mrs. Keith entitled to recover $250,000 in damages from Health- Pro for her personal injuries.
Affirmed
Plaintiff's Experts:
Defendant's Experts:
Comments:
