Jurors continue to deliberate in nursing home trial

A 12-member jury charged with deciding whether or not a nursing home and other area care facilities are responsible for the death of a North Philadelphia patriarch is still out deliberating.

The jury has not yet reached a decision in Williams vs. Willow Terrace, which pits Philadelphia resident Camay Williams and her family members against the city nursing home of the same name.

Closing arguments in the trial took place on Tuesday, after which Philadelphia Common Pleas Court Judge Ricardo Jackson read the jurors their charge and sent them back to begin deliberations.

Plaintiff’s attorney Pete Giglione, of the firm Wilkes & McHugh, told the Pennsylvania Record that the jury had not yet reached a decision by Thursday evening.

The trial began more than three weeks ago.

The jury is charged with deciding whether the pressure ulcers developed by Marcel Mackey, Sr. were due to the negligence of Willow Terrace employees and workers from Albert Einstein Medical Center, St. Agnes Continuing Care, and Methodist Hospital.

During the three-week trial, plaintiff’s attorneys called a number of witnesses who spoke about everything from alleged complaints from workers regarding a lack of staffing to other factors that may have led to Mackey not receiving proper care.

The defense, however, had pointed out Mackey’s numerous health problems, and their ability to all but ensure that the man would have had trouble fighting off infection.

The pressure ulcer Mackey developed on his backside was just one of many problems he allegedly developed during his time under medical supervision.

During trial testimony, Mackey’s widow, Joyce Mackey, and his adult daughter, Camay Williams, who filed the suit as executrix of Mackey’s estate, spoke about the late Mackey’s strong family connections.

Their attorneys said the late father, husband and grandfather didn’t deserve to die the way he did, in apparent pain and unable to communicate to his caretakers.

If jurors don’t reach a decision by Friday afternoon, deliberations are expected to continue into next week.