Week in Review : MAJOR EVENTS, IMAGES AND PEOPLE IN ORANGE COUNTY NEWS : MISCELLANY/ NEWSMAKERS AND MILESTONES

A 21-year old man who lost control of his motorcycle on the Orange Freeway in 1984 has agreed to a $3.8-million settlement in a medical malpractice lawsuit brought against an Anaheim hospital emergency room.

Thomas Michael Abbott, who was intoxicated at the time of the high-speed accident, was rendered a paraplegic. His suit charged that his spinal cord was severed while he was being treated at Anaheim Memorial Hospital.

In the settlement, insurers for the hospital admitted no wrongdoing, according to Abbott’s attorney, Philip S. Cifarelli. Abbott, a carpet layer, will receive $125,000 in cash and $2,500 per month for life, plus interest.

“I think we’ve really protected Tom’s interests,” Cifarelli said of the agreement.

After the late-night, single-vehicle accident, which took place on the Orange Freeway near Orangethorpe Avenue, Abbott was taken by paramedics to the emergency room at Anaheim Memorial.

According to the lawsuit, Abbott had suffered a broken back, but the emergency room staff only X-rayed his head and neck. Told that the X-rays were negative and that he was being discharged, according to the lawsuit, Abbott was dressed and being moved to a wheelchair when he collapsed. Further examination determined that his spine had been severed.

Cifarelli said that the fact that Abbott had been drinking at a party before the accident was a major factor in the decision to settle the claim.