Mario Williams (Photo: John Disney/ALM)

A pair of Atlanta lawyers notched a $1 million-plus medical malpractice verdict in Virginia against a prison health contractor and doctor accused if allowing an inmate's fractured hand to go untreated for months, resulting in a permanent impairment to his right ring finger.

The injury, which occurred while John Kinlaw was playing Frisbee in an exercise yard, continues to cause him pain and keep him from pursuing a career he trained for in aviation technology, said Mario Williams of NDH LLC.

The verdict handed down Thursday included more than $700,000 in damages against Armor Correctional Health Services and Dr. Charles Nwaokocha, and another $350,000 in punitive damages awarded against the doctor alone. The total award is just over $1 million.

The award would have been even higher, but the judge reduced $625,000 in punitives the jury awarded to $350,000 to comply with Virginia's statutory cap.

Williams said his client, John Kinlaw, only had eight more months to serve when he was injured, and there was evidence that off-site orthopedic surgery such as he needed is one of Armor's biggest expenses.   

“One of our arguments was that they were like, 'Hey, let's just wait this guy out,'” said Williams, who tried the case with associate Andrew Tate. 

Armor and Nwaokocha are represented by Edward McNelis III and Christopher Quirk of Sands Anderson in Richmond.

McNelis said his side is still considering their options.

“We are currently carefully reviewing the record,” he said. “We believe there are issues that likely warrant appellate review; however, no decisions have been made at this point.”

According to Williams and court filings, Kinlaw was a 29-year-old inmate at Lunenburg Correctional Center when he was injured in November 2016. Kinlaw was serving an eight-year sentence for armed robbery.

“He's a good guy from a solid background,” said Williams. “He just got caught up in this opioid stuff.”    

“He fell on his hand playing Frisbee and heard a pop,” he said. 

Kinlaw's hand became swollen and hurt, and, after waiting two days for an on-site X-ray, he was found to have a fracture in the lower bone of his ring finger. 

“The nurses gave him an Ace bandage and a Motrin,” Williams said.

The X-ray didn't show that Kinlaw had a second fracture to a metacarpal bone and that a small piece of bone had broken off in his hand.

Kinlaw kept complaining of pain and swelling, and in January Nwaokocha ordered an MRI, but it was only in April that a CT scan revealed how badly fractured his hand was.

“All this he's complaining, his parents are going ballistic calling the prison, calling elected officials,” Williams said. 

“They finally scheduled surgery for July 14, three or fours days before he was released,” said Williams.

It was too late to repair the damaged cartilage and bone by that time, and Kinlaw underwent another surgery to have the joint fused. He now cannot completely close his hand or fully grip objects, Williams said.

Kinlaw sued Nwaokocha and Armor in Virginia's Eastern District in 2017. The complaint originally named two Armor nurses as well, but they were voluntarily dismissed. 

Williams said he initially demanded more than $1 million to settle, which was denied. A mediation ordered by Senior Judge Robert Payne went nowhere, he said. 

According to court filings, Kinlaw was two classes away from earning an associate degree in aviation when he injured his hand, but he found that couldn't handle the tools and small parts necessary to work in the field. 

Williams said he finished his degree, but an employability expert said his chances of maintaining an aviation job with his limited dexterity are “slim.” He's now in construction management.

The trial began Monday. 

According to the defense portion of the pretrial order, there was no dispute that Kinlaw suffers from an impaired finger. 

But, it said, his “three felony convictions alone, not his hand injury, prevent him from becoming an aviation mechanic.”

The defense also said “Kinlaw's medical history does not make Dr. Nwaokocha liable for any of his claimed damages.”

In closing, WIlliams said he asked the jury to award about $700,000, reflecting Kinlaw's decreased employability and pain and suffering.

Williams said the judge did not allow the jury to take the fact that Kinlaw was injured while serving time into consideration. 

“The whole issue of it being a correctional facility was not relevant,” he said. “We go a jury instruction from Judge Payne that said the standard of care is universal and does not change when you're in prison.”