NEW ORLEANS - A seaman claims he suffered permanent physical disability when a doctor misdiagnosed a brown recluse spider bite as a boil.
Robert Wayne Mooney Jr. filed suit against W&T Offshore Inc., Offshore Services of Acadiana and The Matterhorn Seastar, in rem, on April 16 in federal court in New Orleans.
While working aboard the Matterhorn Seastar, Mooney states he was injured on April 14, 2011 when he was bitten by a brown recluse spider. He was seen by the vessel's doctor and the bite was misdiagnosed as a boil. The doctor mistreated the spider bite by lancing the wound, resulting in complications and serious injuries, the lawsuit states.
The plaintiff is asking for more than $250,000 in damages for lost wages, impairment of earning capacity, lost future income, medical expenses, physical pain and suffering, mental pain and suffering, residual physical disability and impairment of function, loss of enjoyment of life, maintenance and cure, punitive damages, attorney's fees, interest and court costs.
Mooney is represented by New Orleans attorneys Richard H. Barker, IV. and Jack W. Harang.
U.S. District Judge Lance M. Africk is assigned to the case.
Case No. 2:12-cv-00969