Charles-Singleton v. Depasquale

Defense Verdict

Date of Verdict: Jan. 7.

Court and Case No.: C.P. Philadelphia No. 71201549.

Judge: Ann M. Butchart.

Type of Action: Motor vehicle.

Injuries: Knee injury.

Plaintiffs Counsel: John King, DiSandro & Malloy.

Plaintiffs Expert: Maxwell Stepanuk Jr., orthopedic surgery, Elkins Park.

Defense Counsel: Nicholas A. Cummins, Bennett, Bricklin & Saltzburg, Philadelphia.

Defense Expert: Gary W. Muller, orthopedic surgery, Philadelphia.

Comment:

On Jan. 8, 2016, plaintiff Rose Charles-Singleton, 57, a tax examiner, was a passenger of a transit bus that was traveling on Oregon Avenue, in Philadelphia. While the bus was stopped near the intersection at Broad Street, its rear end was struck by a trailing car that was being driven by Peter Depasquale. Charles-Singleton claimed that he suffered an injury of a knee. Charles-Singleton sued Depasquale. The lawsuit alleged that Depasquale was negligent in his operation of the bus.

Defense counsel conceded liability. The trial addressed damages.

Charles-Singleton, who was sitting at the time of the accident, claimed that she struck her right knee upon impact. Four days after the accident, she presented to an immediate care facility with complaints of pain in her right knee. She was examined and released.

Charles-Singleton was ultimately diagnosed with an aggravation of pre-existing arthritis in her right knee. Charles-Singleton attempted two sessions of physical therapy, but she claimed that she had to discontinue the treatment because it worsened her knee pain.

Through April 2019, Charles-Singleton consulted with an orthopedic surgeon semiregularly. She received two cortisone injections and a viscosupplementation injection in her knee. With conservative treatment unsuccessful, it was determined that Charles-Singleton required surgery.

On April 16, 2019, Charles-Singleton underwent a right knee replacement. Following the surgery, Charles-Singleton treated with physical therapy, which she continued through August 2016.

Charles-Singleton testified that in the years prior to the surgery, her knee was prone to lock and fail. She claimed that she had difficulty driving and that she had difficulty caring for ill family members. Post-surgery, her condition improved, but she continued to suffer pain, which she rated a one out of 10, when using the stairs repeatedly. She sought to recover stipulated medical costs of $37,528.28 and stipulated past lost earnings of $2,120.12, having missed four months of work, plus damages for past and future pain and suffering.

The defense questioned the legitimacy of Charles-Singleton's injuries. The defense cited video surveillance footage taken inside the bus. The footage showed that Charles-Singleton barely moved at the time of impact. Moreover, in the footage she demonstrated no difficulty in exiting the bus, the defense noted. The defense argued that the impact was not severe enough to cause Charles-Singleton's alleged injury.

According to the defense, Charles-Singleton had a history of knee complaints, dating to 2003. An MRI in June 2013 showed that she had osteoarthritis and a torn meniscus, the defense asserted.

The defense cited the transcript testimony of its expert orthopedist, who stated that Charles-Singleton may have suffered a contusion from the accident and that her surgery was caused by her pre-existing condition.

The jury rendered a defense verdict. It found that Depasquale's negligence was not a factual cause of injury to Charles-Singleton.

This report is based on information that was provided by defense counsel. Plaintiffs counsel did not respond to calls for comment.

—This report first appeared in VerdictSearch, an ALM publication