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September 21, 2011: John Johnson, a 68 year-old retired plumber and avid mountain biker, is
diagnosed with malignant pleural mesothelioma, a cancer caused by asbestos.
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October 3, 2011: John Johnson and his 66 year old wife, Sue Johnson, file a lawsuit in Los
Angeles County Superior Court against entities whose products or jobsites
were involved in Mr. Johnson’s exposures to asbestos.
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September 8 2011
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December 5, 2011: The presiding judge of the coordinated asbestos docket for Los Angeles,
Orange and San Diego Counties hears a motion filed on behalf of Mr. and
Mrs. Johnson to specially set their case for trial and limit the duration
of defense deposition questioning. The motion is supported by declarations
from Mr. Johnson’s treating doctor, surgical oncologist
Dr. Robert Cameron , in which Dr. Cameron opines that the
stress of a prolonged deposition would likely hasten Mr. Johnson’s decline and urges the court to
limit the deposition to no more than 12 hours. The judge sets the case
for trial on March 26, 2012, but refuses to order any reduction in the
20 hours of defense deposition questioning allowed by court rules.
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Dr. Robert Cameron
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December 12, 2011 – January 5, 2012: Mr. Johnson’s direct examination is completed followed by 5 sessions
of defense questioning. At this point, the defense had questioned Mr.
Johnson for over 11 hours—just shy of the 12 hour maximum recommended
by Dr. Cameron.
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December 12, 2011
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January 6, 2012: Defense counsel request the judge for additional time beyond 20 hours to
complete their questioning of Mr. Johnson. The request is made via conference
call and is unsupported by evidence meeting the “good cause”
standard set by court rules for subjecting a terminally ill patient to
more than 20 hours of questioning. Over the strong objection of the Johnsons’
attorneys, the judge granted the defense an additional 5 hours of questioning—or
a total of 25 hours.
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January 6, 2012
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January 6 – 13, 2012: Mr. Johnson is questioned by defense counsel over the course of 4 sessions.
At the conclusion of the January 13 session, 21 hours and 36 minutes of
defense questioning had been completed. In the absence of the judge’s
order granting an additional five hours, the deposition would have been
completed.
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January 11, 2012
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January 17 – 18, 2012: Prior to the planned resumption of the deposition on January 17, Mr. Johnson
experiences increased shortness of breath and is unable to proceed. He
is taken by paramedics to Hoag hospital on the evening of January 17.
He is later released and seeks treatment from Dr. Cameron on January 18.
Unfortunately, there is nothing Dr. Cameron can do to relieve the respiratory
distress. Mr. Johnson is unable to be deposed for the remainder of the
week, believing that with some rest, he will feel better and complete
the deposition the following week.
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January 13, 2012
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January 19 – 22, 2012: Mr. Johnson’s condition worsens. The shortness of breath makes it
increasingly difficult to eat and sleep. Mr. Johnson understands that
if he does not complete the 3 hours and 24 minutes of defense deposition
questioning required by the extended 25 hour limit, none of his testimony
will be admissible at trial and his case will be dismissed for lack of
evidence. Mr. Johnson feels duty-bound to complete the deposition in order
to avoid leaving Mrs. Johnson without funds needed to pay his medical
bills and meet her future financial needs. Despite his pain, Mr. Johnson
vows to complete his deposition on Monday January 23.
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January 23, 2012
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January 23, 2012: Mr. Johnson’s deposition resumes. He is questioned in a recliner
chair for 1 hour and 48 minutes and asks for a break, but does not want
to stop until the remaining time is completed. Defense counsel are excused
and he takes a nap for two hours. The deposition resumes and Mr. Johnson
struggles through the remaining time, finally completing the deposition
after 6:00 p.m. Forty minutes later, he collapses and is not breathing.
Paramedics arrive, place him on a mechanical ventilator and take him to
Hoag hospital.
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January 23, 2012
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January 24, 2012: Mr. Johnson is pronounced dead at 12:28 p.m. The Hoag medical records state
under final diagnoses: “
Sudden cardiac arrest while giving a courtroom deposition.” The
Death Certificate identifies the cause of death as “
cardio pulmonary arrest” as the result of “
cardiogenic shock” and
“acute respiratory failure.” “End stage mesothelioma” is listed as the underlying cause.
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