ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Jurors in New Mexico have awarded a man more than $412 million in a medical malpractice case that involved a men’s health clinic that operates in several states.
The man’s attorneys celebrated Monday’s verdict, saying they are hopeful it will prevent other men from falling victim to a scheme that involved fraud and what they described as dangerous penile injections. They said the punitive and compensatory damages total the largest amount to ever be awarded by a jury in a medical malpractice case in the U.S.
“It's a national record setting case and it's righteous because I don't think there's any place for licensed professionals to be defrauding patients for money. That is a very egregious breach of their fiduciary duty," said Lori Bencoe, one of the lawyers who represented the plaintiff. "That's breach of trust and anytime someone is wearing a white coat, they shouldn't be allowed to do that.”
The award follows a trial held in Albuquerque earlier this month that centered on allegations outlined in a lawsuit filed by the man's attorneys in 2020. NuMale Medical Center and company officials were named as defendants.
According to the complaint, the man was 66 when he visited the clinic in 2017 in search of treatment for fatigue and weight loss. The clinic is accused of misdiagnosing him and unnecessarily treating him with “invasive erectile dysfunction shots” that caused irreversible damage.
Nick Rowley, another attorney who was part of the plaintiff's team, said the out-of-state medical corporation set up a “fraudulent scheme to make millions off of conning old men.” He provided some details in a social media post, saying clinic workers told patients they would have irreversible damage if they didn't agree to injections three times a week.
NuMale Medical Center President Brad Palubicki said in a statement sent Wednesday to The Associated Press that the company's focus is on continuing to deliver responsible patient care while maintaining strict safety and compliance standards at all of its facilities.
“While we respect the judicial process, due to ongoing legal proceedings, we cannot comment on specific details of the case at this time,” he said.
NuMale also has clinics in Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Nevada, Nebraska, North Carolina and Wisconsin.
According to court records, jurors found that fraudulent and negligent conduct by the defendants resulted in damages to the plaintiff. They also found that unconscionable conduct by the defendants violated the Unfair Practices Act.
A sign for NuMale Medical Center is displayed outside a building in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Wednesday, Nov. 27, 2024. (AP Photo/Susan Montoya Bryan)
Seattle (6-5) at New York Jets (3-8)
Sunday, 1 p.m. EST, Fox.
BetMGM NFL odds: Seahawks by 2.
Against the spread: Seahawks 4-6-1; Jets 3-8.
Series record: Seahawks lead 13-8.
Last meeting: Seahawks beat Jets 23-6 in Seattle on Jan. 1, 2023.
Last week: Seahawks beat Cardinals 16-6; Jets had bye after losing to Colts 28-27 on Nov. 17.
Seahawks offense: overall (12), rush (28), pass (2), scoring (15).
Seahawks defense: overall (20), rush (23), pass (15t), scoring (14).
Jets offense: overall (27), rush (30), pass (18), scoring (27).
Jets defense: overall (8), rush (22), pass (2), scoring (13).
Turnover differential: Seahawks minus-6; Jets minus-3.
WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba. He has emerged as a key offensive option for Seattle in the past three weeks, with two games during which he had more than 100 yards receiving. He’ll have a challenge going up against the Jets stout pass defense, but he has the speed and route-running ability to break open a game.
QB Aaron Rodgers. The four-time MVP turns 41 on Monday and is coming off a disappointing performance in the loss to Indianapolis. He was 22 of 29 for 184 yards with two touchdown passes, but only 9 of 13 for 76 yards in a sluggish first half. Rodgers has been dealing with leg injuries for much of the season, but says he's feeling a lot better after the bye. His future with the team remains uncertain beyond this season. Rodgers said he hasn't decided if he'll play in 2025, but the Jets would be his first option if he does — and New York wants him.
Seahawks passing game vs. Jets secondary. Seattle ranks second in the NFL in passing offense with Geno Smith spreading the ball around to DK Metcalf, Tyler Lockett and Smith-Njigba. New York has the No. 2-ranked passing defense, helped by a secondary that includes cornerbacks Sauce Gardner, D.J. Reed and Michael Carter II. Those three should get tested early and often by Smith and the Seahawks.
Lockett (knee) and Metcalf (shoulder) sat out practice Wednesday, as did DE Leonard Williams (foot) and recently acquired S AJ Finley (ankle). ... Seahawks RG Anthony Bradford was placed on IR with a high ankle sprain. Rookie Christian Haynes filled in for Bradford and will compete with rookie Sataoa Laumea for the start this week. ... Jets RB Breece Hall sat out practice Wednesday with an injured knee and it’s uncertain if he’ll play. ... LT Tyron Smith remains sidelined with a neck injury and could land on the injured reserve list. ... LB C.J. Mosley was practicing fully this week after suffering a herniated disk in his neck that sidelined him the past four games.
The Seahawks have won the past five meetings with the Jets, who had previously won five in a row in the series. ... New York's most recent win over Seattle came at home at Giants Stadium on Dec. 19, 2004, when Curtis Martin ran for 134 yards and two scores and Santana Moss caught two TD passes from Chad Pennington. ... The Seahawks won the teams' first meeting 17-0 in New York in 1977 on two TD passes by Jim Zorn.
Seattle is 6-0 all time at MetLife Stadium: 4-0 vs. the Giants, 1-0 vs. the Jets and a Super Bowl victory over Denver in February 2014. ... The Seahawks are 18-7, including the playoffs, in the Eastern time zone since 2018. ... Since Week 9, Seattle’s defense ranks fourth in the NFL allowing 16.3 points per game and is fifth against the run by allowing 82.7 yard per game. ... The Seahawks, who are tied with Arizona atop the NFC West, need two victories to reach 400 regular-season wins. … Smith was a second-round pick of the Jets in 2013 out of West Virginia. He threw 28 TD passes with 36 interceptions in 33 games, including 30 starts, for New York over four seasons. ... Smith needs one 300-yard passing game to tie Russell Wilson for the most in a season in franchise history with five. ... Lockett needs two touchdowns to pass Marshawn Lynch for third on Seattle’s total TDs list with 67. He needs one 100-yard receiving game to tie Darrell Jackson for the second most in franchise history with 19. Lockett ranks second to Steve Largent in franchise history in receptions (650), yards receiving (8,489) and TD catches (61). ... Metcalf needs 13 yards receiving to pass Largent for the most in a player’s first six seasons in franchise history with 6,042. He also needs one TD catch to pass Largent for the most in a player’s first six seasons in franchise history with 47. Metcalf ranks first in franchise history for the most catches in that same span with 418. ... Smith-Njigba has tied his career high with four TD catches. He need 123 yards receiving to pass Largent (1984) for the most over a four-game span in a single season in franchise history with 490. ... The Seahawks held Cardinals RB James Conner to 8 yards rushing on seven carries last week, his lowest output since 2017. ... The Jets have lost seven of their past eight and are coming off their bye-week break, during which general manager Joe Douglas was fired. ... New York is 1-5 since Jeff Ulbrich took over as the interim coach in place of the fired Robert Saleh. ... The Jets' loss to the Colts marked the first time in franchise history they dropped a game in which they scored 25 or more points, had fewer than 15 yards in penalties and committed no turnovers, according to ESPN Research. ... Rodgers is having a subpar statistical season with 17 TDs and seven INTs, although he hasn't been picked off in his past four games. Rodgers hasn’t passed for 300 yards since throwing for 341 against Chicago on Dec. 12, 2021 — a span of 33 regular-season games and 34 overall, including one playoff game. It’s the third-longest drought in the past 20 years, trailing David Garrard’s 39 straight in 2005-08 and Alex Smith’s 35 from 2005-09. ... WR Garrett Wilson ranks fifth in the NFL with 69 receptions and is second in targets with 108. Of his 722 yards receiving, 47.2% have come after the catch — the fourth-highest rate among the league’s top 25 receivers in yards. ... WR Davante Adams has 26 catches on 46 targets for 278 yards and a TD in five games since being acquired from Las Vegas. ... Hall has nine games with 80 or more yards from scrimmage, tied with Philadelphia's Saquon Barkley and Green Bay's Josh Jacobs for the most in the NFL this season. ... DL Quinnen Williams has five or more sacks in each of his past five seasons, one of nine players to do so and the only interior defensive lineman to accomplish the feat. ... Anders Carlson, the Jets' fourth kicker in as many games, made both of his field-goal tries — including a career-best 58-yarder — and his three extra-point attempts in his debut for New York against Indianapolis.
Seahawks RB Kenneth Walker III has just 95 yards and a TD on 30 carries in the past two games, but could be in for a bounce-back game against the Jets and their struggling run defense.
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL
New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers (8) tries to avoid a sack from Indianapolis Colts defensive end Kwity Paye (51) during the fourth quarter of an NFL football game, Sunday, Nov. 17, 2024, in East Rutherford, N.J. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)
Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith (7) throws during the first half of an NFL football game against the Arizona Cardinals, Sunday, Nov. 24, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Jason Redmond)
