ANNAPOLIS, Md., July 11 (UPI) -- A judgment against a hospital that accused doctors of causing brain damage to a baby born there was reversed by the Maryland Court of Special Appeals.
The judges Wednesday ordered the malpractice case, in which Johns Hopkins Hospital was sued after a baby was born with severe and irreversible brain damage, back to a lower court for retrial.
The case stems from February 2011, when Rebecca Fielding and Enso Martinez sued the Baltimore hospital, claiming their son Enzo was deprived of oxygen as Fielding awaited a caesarian section at the hospital the previous March.
Enzo was diagnosed after birth with hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy, which caused cognitive delays and is permanent, The Baltimore Sun reported Thursday.
The hospital contended the baby's injuries were caused by procedure performed by midwife Evelyn Muhlhan, who attempted to deliver the baby before sending the mother to the hospital by ambulance.
The case gained attention for its $55 million judgment, later reduced by a trial court to $28.3 million in part because of Maryland's cap on damages.
The latest ruling from the state's intermediate appellate court is a precedent in that it is the first time a Maryland court has addressed whether alleged negligence of a person not directly involved in a case can be used at a trial, the newspaper said.
