Nursing Home Lawsuit

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR
PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY, MARYLAND
Civil Division

CINDY KNOTT Individually, and as Personal Representative for the Estate of
Geraldine Knott
801 Brightseat Road
Landover, MD 20785

AND

DAVID KNOTT
11F3 Smith Drive
Lithonia, CA 40058

AND

SARA KNOTT JEFFERSON
505 Silver Hill Road

Suitland, MD 20746

Plaintiffs,

v.

CHERRYWOOD LIMITED PARTNERSHIP
TRADING AS
FUTURECARE - CHERRYWOOD
12020 Reisterstown Road
Reisterstown, MD 21136

Defendant

Serve on Resident Agent:
GARY ATTMAN
7779 New York Lane
Glen Burnie, MD 21061

CASE NO.:

Survival action and wrongful death nursing home complaint

Whitney Knott, individually, and as Personal Representative for the Estate of Geraldine Knott, David Knott, and Sara Knott Jefferson, brings this lawsuit FutureCare. In support of this claim, Plaintiff states as follows:

1. That the Plaintiff Whitney Knott is the surviving daughter of the late Geraldine Knott. She is a Maryland resident, now at at the time of her mother's untimely death.
2. That the Estate of Geraldine Knott is an Estate opened in the State of Maryland and is a bonafide legal entity under Maryland Law.
3. That Whitney Knott is the Personal Representative for the Estate of Geraldine Knott.
4. That Sara Knott Jefferson is the surviving daughter of Geraldine Knott.
5. That David Knott is the surviving son of Geraldine Knott.
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6. That Geraldine Knott died on January 19, 2013, in the State of Maryland.
7. That lawsuit is being brought under both the Maryland Wrongful Death Statute and the Maryland law pertaining to actions involving health care negligence claims
8. That at all times relevant to the claim at bar, the defendant nursing home, Cherrywood Limited Partnership, was, and still is, a Maryland Limited Partnership, trading as Future Care – Cherrywood. The Defendant is a nursing home provider. Its principal place of business located at 12020 Reisterstown Road in Reisterstown, Maryland 21136.
9. That at all times relevant to this suit, Defendant owned and operated a nursing home located at 12020 Reisterstown Road in Reisterstown, Maryland 21136.
10. That at all times relevant to this lawsuit, the late Geraldine Knott was a resident of the Defendant’s owned and operated Nursing Home located at 12020 Reisterstown Road, in Baltimore County, Maryland and she was receiving medical care and treatment at the Defendant’s Nursing Home from the time period of August 2008 until the time of her death.
11. The Defendant employed various medical providers and medical staff at their Nursing Home and these employees/servants/agents who include Beatrice Harps, were acting within the scope of their employment when they rendered medical care to the late Geraldine Knott, and they failed to follow the applicable standard of medical care during their care and treatment of the late Geraldine Knott at 12020 Reisterstown Road, in Reisterstown, Maryland 21136, which proximately resulted in a physical injury to the late Geraldine Knott, and proximately caused her death on January 19, 2009.
12. That the amount of this claim exceeds the jurisdictional limit of the District Court of Maryland and the appropriate venue for this claim is Baltimore County, Maryland because the medical care provided to the late Geraldine Knott by the Defendant occurred in Baltimore County, Maryland.
13. That the act of medical malpractice/nursing home negligence by the Defendant occurred on or about December 2012, and thereafter, in the State of Maryland.
14. That under the applicable standard of medical care, the Defendant was required to provide proper medical care for the late Geraldine Knott which included: 1) implementing a pressure relief mattress; 2) clearly documenting the turning of the Mrs. Knott; 3) following the doctor’s recommendation for a pressure mattress; 4) taking action to implement a course of treatment for Mrs. Knott’s pressure ulcers; 5) aggressively intervening when the pressure ulcers became worse; and 6) admitting Mrs. Knott to a hospital for the treatment of her pressure ulcers.
15. As a direct and proximate result of the Defendant, by and through their employees/servants/agents, breaching the applicable standard of medical care owed to Ms. Knott, by failing to provide all of the proper medical care mentioned in paragraph 14 above, the late Geraldine Knott sustained a physical injury to her body, which became infected, and later died as a direct result from the infection and sepsis.
16. That as a direct and proximate result of the breach of the applicable standard of medical care by the Defendant, by and through its employees/servants/agents, the late Geraldine Knott suffered conscious pain and suffering, physical injuries, and death.
17. That all of the injuries and damages sustained by the late Geraldine Knott are now being brought by the Estate of Geraldine Knott, by and through its Personal Representative Whitney Knott, and were the direct and proximate result of the negligent actions and breaches of the applicable standards of medical care by the Defendant, and through their employees/servants/agents, without any act or omission on the part of the late Geraldine Knott, or on the part of any of the Plaintiffs herein, directly thereunto contributing.
18. That the late Geraldine Knott and all of the Plaintiffs herein did not assume the risk of the injuries and death of the late Geraldine Knott.
19. That attached to this lawsuit is a Certificate of Qualified Expert and Expert Report from Jonathan Klein, M.D. which are incorporated by reference herein as Exhibits 1 and 2, respectively.
20. That pursuant to Maryland Rule 15-1001, all of those persons who qualify as beneficiaries under the Maryland Wrongful Death Statute are named as Plaintiffs in this complaint and are all represented by Ronald V. Miller, Jr., and Miller & Zois, LLC.
21. That all Plaintiffs have complied with all conditions precedent under all applicable Maryland laws and statutes in order to file this Complaint in the Circuit Court for Baltimore County, which include the filing of a claim in the Health Claims Alternate Dispute Resolution Office and obtaining an Order of transfer from Director Harry Chase which is attached hereto and incorporated by reference herein as Exhibit 3.

The Plaintiff re-alleges and incorporates by reference herein all of the allegations contained in paragraphs 1-21 above.

22. That on or about December 2012 and up until Ms. Knott's death, the Defendant, by and through all of its employees/servant/agents breached the applicable standard of medical care owed to the decedent.
23. This breach proximately caused great physical injury to Geraldine Knott resulting in her death, along with conscious pain and suffering and was all the direct and proximate cause of all of the injuries and damages being pursued by the Personal Representative of the Estate of Geraldine Knott.

WHEREFORE: The Plaintiff Whitney Knott, as Personal Representative for the Estate of Geraldine Knott, claims monetary damages against the Defendant in an amount to be determined at trial, plus costs, and for any further relief that this Honorable Court determines necessary and appropriate.

24. The Plaintiffs re-allege and incorporate by reference herein all of the allegations contained in paragraphs 1-23 above.
25. That the Defendant, by and through its employees/servants/agents deviated from the acceptable standard of medical care during the care and treatment of the late Geraldine Knott and that this deviation from the applicable standard of care was the direct and proximate cause of the death of Geraldine Knott.
26. That as a direct result of the negligence and breaches of the applicable standard of medical care by the Defendant outlined above that resulted in the death of the late Geraldine Knott, the Plaintiffs, as surviving children of the late Geraldine Knott, sustained those damages as outlined in the Annotated Code of Maryland, Courts and Judicial Proceedings Article, Section 3-904, to include but not limited to, mental anguish, conscious emotional pain and suffering, and loss of companionship.

WHEREFORE: The Plaintiffs claims monetary damages against the Defendant in an amount to be determined at trial, plus costs, and for any further relief that this Honorable Court determines necessary and appropriate.

Respectfully submitted,
Miller & Zois, LLC

Ronald V. Miller, Jr.

Rodney M. Gaston
1 South St, #2450
Baltimore, MD 21202
(410) 779-4600
(410) 760-8922 (facsimile)
Attorneys for Plaintiff

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