California Jury Awards $4.5 Million for Malpractice

A Burbank, Calif., jury has awarded a woman $4.5 million in a medical malpractice case she brought against a La Canada Flintridge physician after the death of her husband.

The Pasadena Star-News says the jury on April 6 awarded Susanne Whatley-Miller and her two daughters almost $3.5 million in general damages, including pain and suffering, and more than $1 million in economic damages.

Thomas Miller was the director of the Glendale Community Foundation when he died in December 2006 at the age of 51.

Whatley-Miller’s attorney Dan Powell says Dr. Collin Cooper misdiagnosed Miller’s condition when he came to his office complaining of chest pains. Miller died after being given a stress test.

Powell says a trial last year ended in a hung jury.

Information from: Pasadena Star-News