Mrs. A was visiting downtown Greensboro, Georgia to go antique shopping. She was crossing the street in a crosswalk with a walk signal when she was hit by a careless driver. She broke her ankle and shoulder, requiring surgery. Before the case went to trial, Attorney Michael Ruppersburg secured a $200,000 settlement for her, which was nearly three times her medical bills. The settlement is notable because the case was filed in Greene County, which is a conservative, rural county without a history of significant verdicts and settlements.
The Accident
Mrs. A was walking on East Broad Street at its intersection with South East Street in downtown Greensboro. The walk signal came on so she began walking across the street. A driver on South East Street wasn’t paying attention and began making a left turn. He hit Mrs. A in the crosswalk. The police investigated and found the driver at fault for violating O.C.G.A. § 40-6-91, failure to yield to pedestrian in a crosswalk.
The Injuries
The impact knocked Mrs. A down to the ground and she landed hard on her left side. She immediately knew her shoulder was broken and she couldn’t move it.
EMS responded to the scene and transported her to the emergency room at St. Mary’s Good Samaritan Hospital. Doctors noted that she had left shoulder pain and problems moving her left shoulder. X-rays showed an “acute traumatic comminuted fracture of the left proximal humerus.” This means that the humerus, which is the bone in your upper arm, was broken in multiple places. The doctors gave her pain medication, put her shoulder into a shoulder immobilizer and instructed her to follow up with an orthopedic surgeon ASAP.
Mrs. A saw an orthopedic surgeon the very next day. He reviewed the x-rays and ordered a CT scan to get a better view of the broken shoulder. The doctor determined that while the humerus was broken in multiple places it was still aligned and recommended that they try placing it in a cast to see if it would heal correctly without surgery. He warned her that if it did not heal correctly, surgery would be necessary.
Unfortunately, over the next couple of weeks Mrs. A’s shoulder pain got worse. The doctor ordered more x-rays, which showed that the broken bone was now out of alignment. He informed Mrs. A that she would now need surgery to repair the fracture. She underwent the surgery, called an open reduction internal fixation surgery. It involved using a metal plate and screws to secure the fracture and correctly align it while it healed. Here are x-rays of her shoulder after the surgery:
The Settlement
Before the case went to trial, we secured a $200,000 shoulder surgery settlement for Mrs. A. We’re glad we could help her with her case and wish her the best in her recovery.