$45.5 mil awarded in disabled woman's drowning at group home

Michael Kiefer
The Arizona Republic
Dec. 2, 2004 12:00 AM

A jury awarded $45.5 million Wednesday to the family and estate of a seriously disabled woman who drowned while in the care of a group home. In a written statement, the family of the dead woman called the award "a positive, lasting victory for all persons with special needs in the state of Arizona." Ilana Solomon, 26, had several disabilities, including severe developmental delays and poor vision and hearing. She lived in a north Phoenix apartment with one other developmentally disabled person and a full-time caregiver supervised by a company called Developmental Systems Inc. The caregiver put Solomon in a bathtub, and according to police reports left her unsupervised for five to 10 minutes while she used another bathroom in the apartment. When she returned, Solomon's face was under water. "This was a case of a company that chose to betray the trust of a family," said Craig A. Knapp, the attorney who represented the Solomon family. Knapp claims that DSI withheld information about the background of the caregiver and failed to act when she abandoned and neglected other disabled clients. Knapp filed complaints of wrongful death, fraud, abuse, neglect and breach of contract against DSI, its parent company and Arizona, which contracted with DSI and licensed the group home. DSI admitted abuse and wrongful death; the jury found fraud and negligent misrepresentation. Knapp asked for an award of $30 million, but the Maricopa County Superior Court jury returned with the larger amount. Barry E. Lewin, an attorney representing DSI, said he was not sure if his client will appeal.