A federal jury in Georgia has rejected the punitive damages claim of a man who suffered severe burns on his genitals from highly concentrated acid that his urologist had stored in a mislabeled bottle.

William David Morrison's gruesome injuries resulted from a mixup at the PAPP Clinic of Newnan, Ga. The chemicals that a nurse applied to his genitals as part of a diagnostic test came from a bottle which was marked “3% Acetic Acid” -- but actually contained a solution of 72 percent acetic acid.

Both the clinic and the urologist, Dr. Bob Mann, admitted liability, and a jury last week awarded Morrison and his wife $70,000 in compensatory damages. The nurse, Kay Parsons, was found liable on a claim of ordinary negligence.

“This was a terribly negligent act on the part of all three,” the Morrisons' attorney told the Newnan Times-Herald.

But Mann and his employer avoided an award of punitives as the jury decided their conduct did not demonstrate an “entire want of care” -- even though another patient undergoing a similar procedure was injured by the same liquid from the same bottle in 1991.

Morrison visited the clinic in November 2002 for a post-vasectomy checkup. After he requested a test for human papillomavirus (HPV), a common sexually transmitted disease, Parsons retrieved the “3% Acetic Acid” bottle from a storage cabinet.

After the 1991 incident, Mann had written “DO NOT USE” on the back of the bottle and circled the words in red ink. But Parsons did not notice the warning and proceeded to perform the test, inflicting such agony on Morrison that he was rushed to the hospital.

In July 2005, U.S. District Judge Willis B. Hunt denied a defense motion for summary judgment on the punitives claims against Mann and the clinic, finding that

a reasonable fact finder could conclude that [the defendants'] actions, in storing the dangerous substance in a mislabeled bottle in a location where the contents of the bottle could be accessed by staff members such as Nurse Parsons, demonstrate an entire want of care. Morrison v. Mann

Mann testified that he kept the mislabeled bottle on the advice of an attorney so he could not be accused of tampering with evidence. In addition to the “DO NOT USE” warning, he stored the bottle on the top shelf of what he considered to be a “clerical cabinet.”

The jury appeared to agree with the defense that Mann took care to prevent misuse of the bottle.

But it's hard to imagine anything more careless than putting the acetic acid in the same location as bichloracetic acid, which is used to treat HPV lesions. And what possible danger was there of Mann being accused of tampering 11 years after the 1991 accident?

Morrison, who alleged his injuries left him unable to have sex with his wife for an extended time, sounded remarkably restrained after the verdict. “People might think PAPP Clinic is a great place, but they've got some big problems and I just wanted people to know,” he said.

By Matthew Heller
2/27/07