Gurnee family wins $29.1 million in medical malpractice lawsuit

A Gurnee family has won a $29.1 million verdict in a medical malpractice lawsuit brought against the federal government, attorneys said Monday.

The verdict benefits Christian Arroyo, a 6-year-old boy who suffered brain damage at birth and now is a quadriplegic with cerebral palsy. He was delivered in May 2003 at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago.

The lawsuit was brought in federal court against the U.S. government because the doctors in the case worked for a federally funded clinic in Chicago, the Erie Family Health Center, said David Pritchard, the family's attorney.

The case was filed under the Federal Tort Claims Act, which allows people to sue the federal government but requires a bench trial without a jury.

Northern District of Illinois Judge Amy St. Eve handed down the verdict Friday, Pritchard said.

The $29.1 million verdict will be setoff by a $6.5 million settlement reached with the hospital in June 2009.