Nassau County Jury Awards $5 Million, Including Punitive Damages, Over Nursing Home Pressure Ulcers
After trial: The trial court denied all defense post-trial motions on January 14, 2026, leaving the $5 million award intact. The case appeared on the Appellate Division, Second Department's April 2026 appeals mediation calendar, and we found no appellate decision.
Won by Parker Waichman LLP.
A Nassau County jury found on June 26, 2025 that South Shore Rehabilitation and Nursing Center in Freeport violated the Public Health Law and was negligent in caring for resident Henry Serrapica, who developed pressure ulcers on his heels, ankle and sacral area during 2019 and died that December. The jury awarded $5 million, including $1 million in punitive damages. In January 2026 the trial court denied the defense motions to set the verdict aside, reduce it or order a new trial, and the case then went to the Appellate Division.
What happened
Henry Serrapica lived at South Shore Rehabilitation and Nursing Center in Freeport, New York, during 2018 and 2019. In April 2019, staff first documented pressure ulcers on his left and right heels. Over the following months more wounds appeared: one on his left ankle, two others between late August and late November, and one in the sacral area. He died on December 26, 2019. His son, Matthew Serrapica, brought the case as administrator of his estate.
The estate sued the facility and its operating company under Public Health Law 2801-d, which gives nursing home residents a claim when their statutory rights are violated, and also for ordinary nursing negligence. At trial in Nassau County Supreme Court, the evidence centered on basic care. Residents who cannot move on their own are supposed to be repositioned at least every two hours to keep pressure off vulnerable skin. Records and testimony showed Mr. Serrapica was being turned every two to four hours. The nurse treating his wounds had no wound care training, documentation of when care was given was poor, and nutritional support was thin. A medical expert testified that the wounds contributed to his decline through infection and an inability to recover.
The estate's lawyer, Ryan Hamilton McAllister of Parker Waichman, also put on evidence about how residents were treated day to day, including patients left in soiled diapers without pants and dressed in other residents' clothing. Defense counsel was Caitlin Anne Robin.
The trial ran from June 17 to June 26, 2025. The jury returned a verdict for the estate totaling $5 million. It awarded $2 million for physical harm caused by the Public Health Law violations and $1 million for his death resulting from those violations. It awarded $1 million for conscious pain and suffering from negligent nursing care, and $1 million in punitive damages for willful or reckless conduct.
The defendants moved to set aside the verdict, reduce the award and obtain a new trial. On January 14, 2026, Justice Christopher T. McGrath denied the motions on every ground. As to punitive damages, he pointed to the persistent pattern of dignity violations as conduct that went beyond mere carelessness. The award stood at $5 million after that ruling. The case then appeared on the Appellate Division, Second Department's April 2026 appeals mediation calendar, which indicates the defense appealed. We found no appellate decision.
Sources
This account is drawn from contemporaneous public reporting and the court record.
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