BEAUMONT – Today, the Ninth Court of Appeals affirmed a summary judgment win in favor of Baptist Hospitals of Southeast in a lawsuit alleging a patient was burned by hot coffee.
Plaintiff Israel Bob filed his healthcare liability claim against Baptist in Jefferson County District Court back in February 2017.
In his suit, Bob alleges that a Baptist employee placed a cup of hot coffee on a rolling table positioned over him while he was sleeping. When he awoke, he reached for the coffee and spilled it on himself, causing blisters.
Court records show the blisters were treated with Silvadene cream and healed without infection or complication.
Baptist argued there was no evidence to support Bob’s claims and moved for summary judgment, which the trial court granted.
Bob appealed, asserting a Baptist employee delivered “unrequested” hot coffee to him while he was sleeping, breaching the standard of care.
Conversely, Baptist argued there is no evidence that any of its employees brought Bob coffee.
“So here’s the Nancy Drew / Hardy Boys mystery: who placed the hot coffee astride Bob’s lap table while he was sleeping?” Bob’s brief states. “Bob doesn’t even drink coffee, plus he was too weak to get out of bed and get it from the cafeteria. The abundance of circumstantial evidence in this case spilleth over like a cup of hot coffee delivered by (Baptist) in the wee hours of the morning.”
The Ninth Court found that Bob failed to produce more than a scintilla of evidence demonstrating that any action or inaction by Baptist’s employees caused his burn injury to worsen.
“Having overruled all Bob’s issues, we conclude that the trial court did not err in granting summary judgment in Baptist’s favor,” the opinion states. “We affirm the trial court’s order granting summary judgment in favor of Baptist.”
Baptist is represented by Christina Huston and Carol Kennedy, attorneys for the Woodlands law firm of Cooksey, Marcin & Huston.
Bob is represented by Mark Sparks and Layne Walker, attorneys for The Ferguson Law Firm in Beaumont.
Judge Mitch Templeton, 172nd District Court, is presiding over the case in the trial court.
Trial case No. E-199607
Appeal case No. 09-20-00228-CV