A recent verdict in a Virginia court awarded a total of $300 million in damages to three women who claimed they were sexually abused while receiving treatment at a children’s hospital. The Richmond Circuit Court jury granted each woman $60 million in compensatory damages and an additional $40 million in punitive damages, as reported by WTVR-TV.
A lawsuit was filed by 46 former patients of Cumberland Hospital for Children and Adolescents in New Kent, along with their allegations against Dr. Daniel Davidow, the medical director of the hospital. The initial trial focused on three former patients accusing Davidow of inappropriate behavior during femoral pulse exams.
The attorney representing the women, Kevin Biniazan, described the emotional impact of the jury’s decision, stating, “To have a group of people — a group of strangers — to look at them, to listen to them, to tell them that they believe them, that they believe in them, it broke them down, it broke them down in tears immediately. It broke us all down in tears.” However, Davidow’s lawyer, Bob Donnelly, reiterated the denial of the sexual assault allegations and highlighted that the femoral pulse exam in question dates back to the 1960s and 1970s as a standard medical practice.
Despite being acquitted of felony sex abuse charges concerning other former patients in a criminal trial held in April, Dr. Daniel Davidow is still the subject of multiple lawsuits. The upcoming civil trial is slated for March as the legal proceedings continue regarding the alleged misconduct at the Virginia children’s hospital.
