Jury Awards Priest $300 000 After Medication Error

A jury recently awarded a Catholic priest $300 000 after a medication error resulted in a 4-day hospitalization and gastrointestinal complications.

Just the Facts

Father Augustine Njuu was a longtime patient of Mercy Pharmacy Services in Missouri and regularly filled his prescriptions there. He had a documented allergy to lisinopril. In 2022, Njuu’s primary care physician called in a refill order for amlodipine. However, the pharmacy erroneously filled the prescription with lisinopril.

After taking the medication without realizing it has been misfiled, Njuu became severely ill and was hospitalized for 4 days. After recovering, he was left with digestive and gastrointestinal issues.

Njuu hired an attorney who subpoenaed records and took depositions from the pharmacy employees. The attorney found that the allergy was documented in Njuu’s medical records. Deposition testimony uncovered that the pharmacy was routinely violating its own policies regarding dispensing medications. Testimony revealed that the pharmacist in charge of verifying the prescription had learned to wield the scanner in a way that allowed him to bypass verification of the medication.

The attorney filed a lawsuit against the pharmacy alleging negligence and medical malpractice. The pharmacy initially offered to settle the case with Njuu for $39 000. When Njuu declined, the pharmacy withdrew its offer and never made another.

The Trial

The case eventually went to a trial in front of a jury. After deliberation, the jury found Mercy Pharmacy Services liable for the harm to Njuu. They awarded him a total of $300 000—$200 000 for past noneconomic damages (ie, pain and suffering) and $100 000 for future noneconomic damages. The pharmacy was found to be 100% at fault.

The Takeaway

There are actually 2 takeaways here. First, it is critical to ensure that the medication dispensed matches the prescribed drug. No shortcut is ever worth the risk of patient harm.

Second, juries are generally reluctant to blame a patient for taking the wrong medication—even if it looks somewhat different. Jurors typically do not expect a patient to recognize minor changes in pill appearance. A common defense for a pharmacy is to try to shift some liability to the patient for not noticing that their medication was not the same. However most juries, such as this one, will not apportion any liability to a plaintiff in a case like this.

Reference

Cox K. Catholic priest wins six-figure verdict after falling victim to medical malpractice. Missouri Lawyers Media. Published April 29, 2025. Accessed June 17, 2025. https://molawyersmedia.com/2025/04/29/priest-wins-pharmacy-malpractice-verdict/