Avoidable Tragedies

"She's on I think 17 different medications.  She needs operations.  She needs therapy.  One day she's going to need special accommodations in her home.  She's going to need 24-hour care.  There are tremendous, significant bills and it's a situation of really quality of life."  Charles Willinger, Attorney-at-law

Mr. Willinger's client, Charla Nash is "in total darkness", "without eyes, without hands".  She is "permanently scarred, emotionally, physically". She has amassed millions of dollars in medical and other bills. The 51-year-old woman, a resident of Stamford, Connecticut, "endures loneliness, despair and suffering beyond anyone's comprehension in this room". 

The room spoken of being in fact, a chamber where Claims Commissioner J. Paul Vance conducted a hearing into Ms. Nash's claim against the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection.  "I hope and pray that the commissioner will give me my day in court", said Ms. Nash.  "And I also pray that I hope this never happens to anyone else again.  It is not nice."

That is a masterful understatement of reality.  Ms. Nash has undergone a complete face transplant.  There are no guarantees that the transplant will not, one day fail.  She had two hands transplanted, and they did fail; she is now without hands, although she hopes to undergo at some future date, another operation to restore what she has lost.

A 200-pound pet chimpanzee, on the loose, tore off Ms. Nash's nose, lips, eyelids and hands before it was shot dead by police.  She was also blinded.  The attack took place in February 2009, after she was asked by a friend to help her entice the runaway animal back to its home in the owner's house.  When she agreed to help, she was attacked in that process by the animal.

"There is no claim that the state directly caused Ms. Nash's injuries.  The state did not own or possess the chimp that attacked her", claimed Assistant Attorney General Maite Barainca.  But in fact, the issue of the chimp's growing threat to society had not been overlooked by the state agencies.  While state officials contend they did not have the authority to seize the animal, they were warned of the danger involved to the public.

A state biologist had written a memo to state officials in 2008, outlining the potential of the animal seriously causing harm if it felt threatened, characterizing its presence in the community as an "accident waiting to happen."  The biologist warned state authorities that the chimpanzee had reached maturity, "is very large and tremendously strong."

"I am concerned that if he feels threatened or if someone enters his territory, he could seriously hurt someone."  His reports were obviously carefully filed away.  But not forgotten; the animal was commonly referred to as "the gorilla in Stamford". 

For her part, Ms. Nash had this to say about her dreadful experiences: "I miss home.  when you're in a facility, you're alone.  It's hard.  But I'm thankful that I'm still here."