CHICAGO — A Cook County jury has awarded $20.5 million to the family of 11-year-old Ava Wilson, who died in her sleep in 2020 from what medical experts called a lethal overdose of morphine and other medications following a clinic visit for cancer treatment.
Wilson, who was in remission from leukemia, visited the Cancer Center at Advocate Children’s Hospital in October 2020. Despite exhibiting “persistently low blood pressure, difficulty walking, and visible pain,” a nurse practitioner at the center prescribed 15mg of morphine every four hours, according to the family’s attorneys. That dosage was three times higher than any previous prescriptions Ava had received.
Critical Symptoms Reportedly Ignored
Lead trial attorney Matthew L. Williams said clinicians at the clinic ignored several warning signs and failed to hospitalize Ava for proper monitoring. Instead, they sent her home with the high-dose prescription — a decision that would prove fatal.
“Ava’s body was yelling out to these clinicians, ‘Help me!’ — and they just ignored it,” Williams said in a statement.
Roughly 36 hours after the clinic visit, on October 31, 2020, Ava died in her sleep. Autopsy results showed toxic levels of morphine, hydroxyzine, and gabapentin in her system.
Defense Denied Foreseeability of Death
During the trial, the defense argued that Ava’s death was not foreseeable and that the medications prescribed were within standard therapeutic ranges.
However, renowned neuropathologist Dr. Bennet Omalu — best known for his research on chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) — testified for the family, stating the drug combination directly led to Ava’s death.
The jury sided with the Wilson family on Tuesday, delivering the $20.5 million verdict as recognition that the child’s death was both avoidable and a result of medical negligence.
“While nothing will ease the depth of Ava’s loved ones’ pain, the family appreciates that the jury recognized Ava’s death was preventable,” said attorney Aaron D. Boeder.
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