David P. Moody Attorney-Personal Injury Verdicts, Settlements and Lawsuits

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	Developmentally disabled and incapacitated adults make up a special segment of our society. Statistically, these are the citizens who are most often abused and neglected. In almost every instance, they are unable to protect themselves. David Moody is a trial attorney. He is committed to protecting the vulnerable—people who have been neglected in nursing homes, in daycare facilities, in public schools, and by government social workers. David also consults with nonprofit groups and attorneys engaged in litigation on behalf of developmentally disabled, elderly, and incapacitated adults. Learn more about David's work >



	Court Opinions Beckman v. State of Washington, DSHS ($17.8 million) In this unanimous decision by the Washington State Court of Appeals, the largest verdict against the State of Washington ($17.8 million) was upheld. On behalf of his developmentally disabled clients, David successfully argued that the attorney general for the State of Washington, after losing the case at the trial court, should not be allowed to file an untimely appeal. The court agreed. Learn more about the Beckman decision > Caulfield v. State of Washington, DSHS ($2.6 million) In this landmark decision, the Washington State Court of Appeals addressed the issue of negligent case management by a government social worker. David's disabled and vulnerable client suffered from multiple sclerosis and required twenty-four-hour care. The jury determined that a government social worker owes a duty of reasonable care to protect her disabled client from foreseeable harm. Here, David's client was abandoned by the social workers assigned to protect him, leading to severe and life-threatening injuries, including several Class IV bedsores that cut through to his bones. The jury returned a verdict for more than $2.6 million. The entire verdict was upheld on appeal. Learn more about the Caulfield decision > Verdict Reports Beckman v. State of Washington, DSHS ($17.8 million) In this civil rights lawsuit, David represented three developmentally disabled young men who, while living in a state-licensed facility, were repeatedly raped, beaten, and neglected over a period of several months. The jury returned a verdict of $17.8 million in favor of the developmentally disabled plaintiffs, which represents the largest sustained verdict against the State of Washington in history. The jury's verdict included an award of several million dollars in punitive damages, due to the profound violation of these developmentally disabled young men's civil rights. Learn more about the Beckman verdict > Caulfield v. State of Washington, DSHS ($2.6 million) In this lawsuit, which included claims under the Abuse of Vulnerable Adults Act, David represented a profoundly vulnerable gentleman with multiple sclerosis. Although at least two government social workers were assigned to monitor Mr. Caulfield's home care, they failed to do so. As a result, Mr. Caulfield was severely neglected and abandoned, which led to life-threatening injuries, including several Class IV bedsores that cut through to his bones. The jury returned a verdict for more than $2.6 million, which represents the largest single plaintiff verdict in Kitsap County Superior Court history. Learn more about the Caulfield verdict > Return to Top > Settlements Wisman v. State of Washington, DSHS ($2.25 million) In this civil rights lawsuit, David represented a young man with developmental disabilities who was repeatedly sexually abused in a state-licensed facility in Spokane, Washington. The government social worker assigned to monitor and protect the disabled man failed to do so, resulting in profound injuries and permanent psychological trauma. Facing the prospect of a multimillion-dollar jury verdict, the State of Washington, DSHS, agreed to a settlement of $2.25 million. This is believed to be the largest settlement on behalf of a developmentally disabled adult in the history of eastern Washington. Learn more about the Wisman settlement > Bailey v. State of Washington, DSHS ($262,500) Brought under the Abuse of Vulnerable Adults Act, this lawsuit involved an elderly gentleman who was neglected to death in a state-licensed adult family home. By the time the incapacitated client was rushed to the hospital, he was unconscious, febrile, and covered with Class IV bedsores. He died shortly thereafter. Because of the plaintiff's age (97), the defendants placed little value on the case, initially offering $10,000 to make the case go away. As trial approached, the defendants agreed to pay $262,500. Learn more about the Bailey settlement > David v. State of Washington, DSHS ($9.0 million) Thought by many domestic violence experts to be the most egregious ongoing act of spousal violence in our nation's history, the plight of Linda David revealed the depth of systemic incompetence at the State of Washington, DSHS. Trapped on a squalid, 28-foot sailboat for more than twelve years, Linda sustained repeated battering from her state-licensed, state-sponsored caregiver, while he continued to receive several thousand dollars from DSHS each year. When she was finally rescued, every major bone in her body had been shattered, some on more than one occasion. David was chosen to represent Linda David. The lawsuit included claims for the violation of Linda David's civil rights. The settlement is believed to be the largest single-plaintiff settlement in the history of the State of Washington. Learn more about the David settlement > Watkins v. City of Seattle and State of Washington, DSHS ($980,000) In this civil rights lawsuit, David represented a profoundly disabled man who was neglected by two government social workers. Abandoned and left without adequate food and water for days, the disabled man was found, in his own feces, on the edge of death. He was rescued but suffered permanent injuries from which he has never recovered. The plaintiff successfully achieved a settlement of almost $1 million. Learn more about the Watkins settlement > Rhoads v. State of Washington, DSHS ($4.5 million) David was selected to represent the family of a toddler who was violently injured by the state-supported operator of a licensed daycare in Spokane, Washington. Although the State of Washington, DSHS, knew about several previous complaints, it took no steps to close the daycare or alert any of the families who trusted the daycare to protect their children. Through state and national television exposure, this lawsuit has served as a catalyst for change throughout the daycare system in the State of Washington. The settlement of $4.5 million is believed to be the largest settlement on behalf of a disabled child in the history of eastern Washington. Learn more about the Rhoads settlement > Parrick v. State of Washington, Office of the Attorney General ($450,000) David represented the lead investigator for the Office of the Attorney General, Medicaid Fraud Control Unit. This investigator was the top detective for uncovering Medicaid fraud at nursing homes and other Medicaid-supported facilities throughout the State of Washington. After providing truthful, but damaging, testimony against the State of Washington in at least two high-profile lawsuits, the investigator was blackballed and reassigned to a desk job, where he was no longer able to serve as a watchdog for vulnerable citizens. In this federal court lawsuit, David's client received the largest employment settlement ever paid by the State of Washington Office of the Attorney General. Learn more about the Parrick settlement > Return to Top >

Areas of Expertise: Social Work Negligence, Nursing Home Negligence, Daycare Negligence, and School Negligence