On Sept. 23, a jury awarded $4,044,051 to a man who developed multiple infections after colon surgery. In 2003, Dr. Guillermo Ponce De Leon performed a colon resection on William Orton Jr. Orton alleged the surgeon perforated his colon during the procedure and then failed to diagnose it. In the months that followed, Orton developed infections and other complications. As a result, he had to be hospitalized for several weeks and underwent two more operations performed by Ponce De Leon. In April 2004, Orton saw a specialist in New York, who diagnosed a leak related to one of the surgeries. Orton was referred to an abdominal surgeon and his condition greatly improved after surgery. Orton sued Ponce De Leon for more than $2 million, alleging the surgeon’s error and failure to diagnose it led to his post-surgery problems. Ponce De Leon argued that Orton’s complications resulted from Crohn’s disease.
Orton v. Ponce De Leon, No. 05-CV-146040
