Antonacci v. City of Chicago

779 N.E.2d 428, 335 Ill. App. 3d 22, 268 Ill. Dec. 814
CourtAppellate Court of Illinois
DecidedNovember 6, 2002
Docket1 — 01 — 3317
StatusPublished
Cited by10 cases

This text of 779 N.E.2d 428 (Antonacci v. City of Chicago) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Appellate Court of Illinois primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Antonacci v. City of Chicago, 779 N.E.2d 428, 335 Ill. App. 3d 22, 268 Ill. Dec. 814 (Ill. Ct. App. 2002).

Opinion

JUSTICE WOLFSON

delivered the opinion of the court:

We inquire into the extent of statutory immunity given the City of Chicago (the City) where its paramedics allegedly failed to perform an EKG or defibrillation on a patient they had diagnosed as having had a heart attack.

The trial court decided in favor of immunity and granted the City’s motion to dismiss the complaint. We conclude the trial court’s decision was premature. We vacate the order dismissing the lawsuit and remand this cause for further proceedings.

FACTS

Plaintiff, Yvonne Antonacci, individually and as special administrator of the estate of James Antonacci, deceased, sued defendant, City of Chicago, alleging that 911 personnel willfully and wantonly mistreated plaintiffs decedent’s heart attack, resulting in his death. Defendant filed a section 2 — 619 motion to dismiss (735 ILCS 5/2 — 619 (West 2000)) in lieu of an answer, based on the immunity provisions of sections 6 — 105 and 6 — 106(a) of the Local Governmental and Governmental Employees Tort Immunity Act (the Tort Immunity Act) (745 ILCS 10/6 — 105, 6 — 106(a) (West 2000)).

Plaintiff filed a second amended complaint on May 3, 2001. She later attached a physician’s report, pursuant to section 2 — 622(a)(1) of the Code of Civil Procedure. 735 ILCS 5/2 — 622(a)(1) (West 2000). No depositions were taken in this case. Defendant concedes in its brief on appeal the allegations in the physician’s report are a part of the plaintiffs complaint. We look to the second amended complaint and the physician’s report attached to it for the facts of this case.

The complaint alleged on October 5, 2000, plaintiffs decedent suffered a heart attack 1 at his home in Chicago. Plaintiff called 911 and requested an emergency vehicle be dispatched to the home. After two telephone calls to the 911 system, an emergency vehicle with 911 personnel arrived at the home. On arrival, the 911 personnel “began treating plaintiffs decedent,” at which time he had a pulse and a heartbeat. Knowing that plaintiffs decedent required defibrillation 2 3*to regulate his heartbeat and failure to defibrillate was likely to result in death or great bodily injury, the paramedics “intentionally and knowingly refused to defibrillate plaintiffs decedent.”

The complaint also alleged the 911 personnel refused to run an EKG 3 strip on plaintiffs decedent, knowing such a strip was necessary to determine his cardiac rhythm. The 911 personnel knew failure to make this determination would make it impossible to properly determine the course of treatment, creating a strong risk of death or great bodily harm.

Count I of the complaint alleged that as a direct and proximate result of the defendant’s willful and wanton acts and/or omissions, plaintiffs decedent sustained injuries resulting in his death on October 5, 2000. Count II alleged that as a result of defendant’s actions and/or omissions, plaintiff’s decedent suffered injuries that caused him conscious pain and suffering and disability and disfigurement before his death on October 5, 2000.

In the physician’s report attached to the complaint, the physician states his opinion, based on a review of medical records, that plaintiff s decedent suffered a myocardial infarction. The 911 paramedics who responded correctly diagnosed that he had suffered a heart attack and began treating him for that condition. The standard of practice for treatment of a heart attack would be electronic defibrillation unless the performance of an EKG confirmed the patient was in asystole.* ** 4 The EKG is the only way the paramedics could have determined if the heart attack suffered by the patient would be refractory 5 to defibrillation because of the presence of asystole.

While the paramedic records contain a statement that an EKG was performed and the patient was in asystole, there are no strips or evidence in the record to confirm an EKG actually was performed. Witnesses present at the scene say no EKG was performed. In the physician’s opinion, the paramedics deviated from accepted standards of medical practice in failing to perform an EKG and in failing to defibrillate the patient. The physician’s report concludes by stating if the patient had been treated in compliance with accepted standards of medical care, he would have survived the heart attack he suffered.

In response to the complaint, defendant filed a section 2 — 619 motion to dismiss. 735 ILCS 5/2 — 619 (West 2000). In the motion, defendant contended plaintiffs claims were barred by sections 6 — 105 and 6 — 106(a) of the Tort Immunity Act. 6 745 ILCS 10/6 — 105, 6 — 106(a) (West 2000).

Section 6 — 105 states:
“Neither a local public entity nor a public employee acting within the scope of his employment is hable for injury caused by the failure to make a physical or mental examination, or to make an adequate physical or mental examination of any person for the purpose of determining whether such person has a disease or physical or mental condition that would constitute a hazard to the health or safety of himself or others.” 745 ILCS 10/6 — 105 (West 2000).
Section 6 — 106 states:
“(a) Neither a local public entity nor a public employee acting within the scope of his employment is liable for injury resulting from diagnosing or failing to diagnose that a person is afflicted with mental or physical illness or addiction or from failing to prescribe for mental or physical illness or addiction.
(b) Neither a local public entity nor a public employee acting within the scope of his employment is liable for administering with due care the treatment prescribed for mental or physical illness or addiction.
(c) Nothing in this section exonerates a public employee who has undertaken to prescribe for mental or physical illness or addiction from liability for injury proximately caused by his negligence or by his wrongful act in so prescribing or exonerates a local public entity whose employee, while acting in the scope of his employment, so causes such an injury.
(d) Nothing in this section exonerates a public employee from liability for injury proximately caused by his negligent or wrongful act or omission in administering any treatment prescribed for mental or physical illness or addiction or exonerates a local public entity whose employee, while acting in the scope of his employment, so causes such an injury.” 745 ILCS 10/6

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
779 N.E.2d 428, 335 Ill. App. 3d 22, 268 Ill. Dec. 814, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/antonacci-v-city-of-chicago-illappct-2002.