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Jury Awards $34.333 Million Verdict in Carbon Monoxide Poisoning Case

BALTIMORE, July 28 /PRNewswire/ -- Murphy PA announced today that a Baltimore City jury awarded a collective $34.333 million in damages to the twenty-three plaintiffs who were permanently injured by a carbon monoxide release at Ruth's Chris Steakhouse located at the Pier V hotel on February 2, 2008. The jury's verdict is one of the largest in recent memory in Baltimore City.

After a thirteen week trial and two days of deliberations the jury of 3 men and 3 women awarded damages for negligence, public nuisance and battery against both defendants, MJ Harbor Hotel, LLC, who operates the hotel, and owner of the hotel, TPOB Pier 5, LLC. The restaurant was not a defendant.

Nationally renowned trial lawyer William H. ("Billy") Murphy, Jr., speaking on behalf of Murphy PA and co-counsel, Mary McNamara-Koch, Richard V. Falcon and A. Donald C. Discepolo, said, "We are proud to have brought justice and compensation to our injured clients and their families with this verdict. This preventable tragedy will forever impact their lives but hopefully this award will help to ease the pain and lessen the burden on them as they try to rebuild their lives." Koch, a rising star in the trial bar, added "The Plaintiffs thank the jury for their attention and dedication over the 13 weeks of testimony and for this fair and just result."

Baltimore City firefighters who responded to the scene testified that the carbon monoxide levels in the restaurant were the highest that they had seen in their careers. The carbon monoxide release caused the complete evacuation of the restaurant and hotel lobby at the Pier V complex on February 2, 2008.

About Murphy PA: www.murphypa.com Murphy PA, led by nationally known trial lawyer William H. Murphy Jr., specializes in complex civil litigation including commercial, environmental, personal injury, medical malpractice, employment, and class actions. Murphy PA is majority African-American owned and has an extraordinary track record of success in jury verdicts and settlements. Murphy PA has had success recently (2009) in obtaining a $54.4 million class action settlement against Constellation Energy for groundwater contamination around a fly ash dumpsite in Gambrills, Maryland and a $276 million verdict against First Union National Bank in 2002.

    Contact: Howard Libit
    Kearney O'Doherty Public Affairs
    410-685-7080 (office)
    443-604-3706 (cell)

SOURCE Murphy PA