A jury in Columbus cleared an obstetrician of liability in the death of an infant who died when his shoulder and body became lodge inside the mother after his head had been delivered.

Such an occurrence is known as “shoulder dystocia” and, as in the instant case, can lead to the infant being denied oxygen and blood as its umbilical cord is depressed in the birth canal.

Lead defense attorney M. Scott Bailey said the tragic case was notable in that the defendant doctor, Thomas Malone, had also delivered plaintiff Kala Williams years earlier.