Doe v. American National Red Cross

923 F. Supp. 753, 1996 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 5811
CourtDistrict Court, D. Maryland
DecidedApril 25, 1996
DocketCivil AMD 94-3032
StatusPublished
Cited by7 cases

This text of 923 F. Supp. 753 (Doe v. American National Red Cross) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Maryland primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Doe v. American National Red Cross, 923 F. Supp. 753, 1996 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 5811 (D. Md. 1996).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OPINION

DAVIS, District Judge.

The plaintiff in this case, Jane Doe, a pseudonym (“Doe”), is infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (“HIV”)- She seeks damages against the defendant, American National Red Cross t/a Central Red Cross (“Red Cross”), for its alleged negligence in connection with blood transfusions she received in January 1985. This Court has jurisdiction pursuant to 36 U.S.C. § 2. See American Nat’l Red Cross v. S.G., 505 U.S. 247, 112 S.Ct. 2465, 120 L.Ed.2d 201 (1992). Pending before the Court is Red Cross’s motion for summary judgment. No hearing is necessary. Local Rule 105.6 (D.Md.1995). Red Cross contends that Doe’s claims are barred by Maryland’s three-year statute of limitations, Md.Code Ann., Cts. & Jud.Proe. § 5-101 (1974, 1995 Repl.Vol.). For the reasons set forth herein, I agree with Red Cross that the action was not timely instituted.

(i)

Summary judgment is appropriate where the material facts are not in dispute and all that remains is a question of law for the court. Fed.R.Civ.P. 56; see Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986); Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986). Also, it is the law in Maryland that the question of when a cause of action accrues is an issue of law for the court. 1 Pennwalt Corp. v. Nasios, 314 Md. 433, 437, 550 A.2d 1155, 1157 (1988); Harig v. Johns-Manville Prod. Corp., 284 Md. 70, 75, 394 A.2d 299, 302 (1978). When disputed questions of historical fact underlie the issue of accrual of a claim, however, a trial on the issue of accrual is required. In the instant case, I conclude that the relevant and material facts are indeed undisputed, and they are uncomplicated as well.

Doe underwent a cesarean section in January 1985 at St. Agnes Hospital in Baltimore. Following the operation, she was diagnosed with a blood coagulation disorder. As a result, on January 14,1985, she received transfusions of two units of whole blood, which were supplied by Red Cross.

In the meantime, in 1984 and 1985, Doe underwent two additional, unrelated, surgical procedures at Johns Hopkins Hospital (“Hopkins”) in Baltimore. Those operations were performed by the now deceased Dr. Rudolph Almaraz. In 1990, Dr. Almaraz died of AIDS. 2 The public disclosure that a surgeon at the world-renown Hopkins was infected with HIV stirred a major media explosion in the Baltimore area and elsewhere. Doe became aware of Dr. Almaraz’s condition and death as a result of a December 1990 article in the Baltimore Sun newspaper. Subsequently, Doe received a letter from Hopkins advising her of Dr. Almaraz’s death and its cause. Although the letter noted that the risk of having contracted HIV through contact with Dr. Almaraz was “negligible,” Hopkins was nevertheless offering to test all of Dr. Almaraz’s former patients.

Prior to being tested by Hopkins, Doe contacted an attorney, Steven R. Tully, Esq. (“Tully”). 3 She stated that she contacted him first “[b]ecause [she] felt that he was better [able] to investigate it than [her]self.” Doe Dep. at 118. On Tuny’s advice to do so, Doe underwent testing on December 7,1990. *755 She learned approximately one week later that she was positive for HIV.

Shortly thereafter, in January 1991, Tully instituted damage claims on Doe’s behalf by filing a complaint with the Health Claims Arbitration Office, Md.Code Ann., Cts. & Jud.Proc. §§ 3-2A-01 et. seq., (1974, 1995 ReplVol. & 1995 Supp.), against Dr. Almar-az, his estate and Hopkins. 4 Early in those proceedings, Hopkins’ counsel sent a letter, dated March 7, 1991, to Tully. The letter explained, inter alia, that Hopkins was willing to provide Doe with drug therapy for her condition. Df.’s Mem. of Points and Auth. in Supp. of its Mot. for Summ.J.Ex. 18. The letter went on to say, however, that

[i]f there is a demonstration that the transfusion that [Doe] received was a source of the problem, and reimbursement is made from that entity to [Doe], then as we discussed, that reimbursement might be an appropriate source of money from which to reimburse the Hospital for the care we have discussed.

Id.

In addition, counsel for the Almaraz estate sent Tully a letter, dated June 5,1991, which made reference to the 1985 transfusions as a possible source of Doe’s HIV exposure. Id. Ex. 16A The letter summarized a previous phone call. It stated, in part, as follows:

As I relayed to you on the phone, I have also asked Dr. Rodgers [a state health official] about the inquiries being made by the [Maryland] Health Department concerning the blood transfusions that your client received at St. Agnes Hospital in January, 1985. I understand that there were two units of blood involved, from separate donors, and that both units were obtained by St. Agnes Hospital from the Red Cross. For that reason, Dr. Rodgers has been working with representatives of the Red Cross in an attempt to ascertain whether either of these donors is or was HIV positive....
At this point, I believe that the Health Department is doing whatever it can, in conjunction with the Red Cross and the [Centers for Disease Control], to address the two issues about which you expressed concern when we spoke on the telephone: tracking down information about the blood donors and testing tissue samples of Dr. Almaraz.

Id. Tully responded by a letter dated June 7, 1991. Id. Ex. 16B. In his letter, Tully stated that he “too had called Dr. Audrey Rodgers_” 5 Id. Moreover, he specifically mentioned that certain information being sought by opposing counsel should either be in the defendants’ “possession or available from ... St. Agnes Hospital where the transfusions took place.” Id. See also Tully AfPd ¶10.

Meanwhile, Red Cross made attempts to contact the donors of the two units of blood which Doe had received in 1985. It ultimately reached both donors. One tested negative for HIV. The other donor met with a representative of Red Cross, and in an interview “he did acknowledge having been tested and being HIV positive.” Harper Dep. at 54. On May 31, 1991, a lab report confirmed the donor’s status as HIV positive. Id. at 57.

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Bluebook (online)
923 F. Supp. 753, 1996 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 5811, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/doe-v-american-national-red-cross-mdd-1996.