$55 Million settlement in Hopkins case

BALTIMORE (WMAR) - A Baltimore City jury has come back with a verdict making Johns Hopkins Hospital responsible for a $55 million payment in a medical malpractice birth injury case.

More than two years ago, Enso Martinez and his wife Rebecca Fielding were at home with a midwife in labor with their son, but felt they needed to go to the hospital.

Rebecca was taken to Johns Hopkins in an ambulance. She says she was expecting an emergency c-section, but that didn't happen. After more than two hours at the hospital, her son was born, but with a birth defect.

Now a jury decided the family should be compensated for that defect by the hospital.

"I don't know what was going on in their brains and I don't know what was going on behind the scenes, I don't know what was going on with other patients, but whatever it is that went wrong internally or in their minds, I hope that it was at least a wakeup call or a learning experience and that it doesn't happen again," said Rebecca.

Fot their part, Johns Hopkins Medicine's Director of Media Relations and Public Affairs says they sympathize with Fielding's situation, but they're stunned the jury found for the plaintiff.

In a statement Hopkins says the "strongly deny the allegations in Miss Fielding's complaining, and continue to firmly believe that the medical care provided to Miss Fielding by Hopkins was entirely appropriate given the circumstances and that the standard of care was adhered to in her case.  Given our firm belief in this regard, we will appeal the jury's verdict at the Maryland appellate court."