JOHN WILEY CLARK AND WIFE4/15/1987
sarge's car. Because of the smell, and because it was routine when there was an accident fatality, he requested an alcohol test on Bosarge. As stated earlier, the sample for the test was drawn at 10:30 a.m., and processed at about 12:45 p.m. and showed an alcohol level of .08%.
Clark was thrown from his vehicle on impact. He immediately realized that he was seriously injured, since he did not lose consciousness, but could not move his arms or legs. He testified that he found himself in a ditch choking on mud and grass, and had to clean his mouth out with his tongue. He was immediately taken to the emergency room where Dr. John McCloskey, a neurosurgeon, diagnosed him as having a broken neck.
According to Dr. McCloskey, Clark is a partial quadriplegic, as the result of having his seventh vertebrae crushed, and his sixth vertebrae moved forward onto it. He has no control of his back or legs, some control of his arms, control of his neck, and 1/2 of his ability to breathe. He is numb from his abdomen down.
Clark's injuries are, of course, catastrophic. He had two children - 2 1/4 years old and 1 1/2 months old - at the time of the accident. Because of his injuries, he will spend the rest of his life in a wheelchair. Medical witnesses testified at length about the problems that Clark has suffered and will continue to suffer because of the incident. They also testified that, despite some periods of depression, Clark has made an excellent adjustment, due to his own mental attitude and the support of his wife and family. Since the accident, Clark has completed about 1/2 of the course toward a general business/accounting degree.
The Clarks originally sued the City of Pascagoula, Home Insurance, Silver's Lounge, the Velardo's, the Travel Motor Inn, the Estate of Bruce Bosarge, and Allstate Insurance Company, asking for $300,000.00 - in actual damages and $1,000,000.00 in punitive damages. As stated earlier, the insurance companies were ultimately dismissed. Service upon Silver's Lounge and the Velardo's was had by serving attorney Fielding Wright. When these parties did not answer, a default judgment was taken against them. (The record is confusing on this point. The Appellant's Brief indicates that a default judgment was taken against all three of these defendants. The record shows that a motion for entry of default was made and an order entered against only Silver's Lounge and Nick Velardo. However, Silver's and both of the Velardo's moved to set aside the default judgment, and the court's order setting aside the default judgment as to Silver's and Nick Velardo also gave Michael Velardo five days to file responsive pleadings.)
The plaintiffs listed Dr. Donald Dore as an expert witness for their side, prior to trial. However, they never called Dr. Dore, and the defendants called him to testify,
over the plaintiffs' objection, during their case. Dr. Dore was the physician who drew blood from Bosarge's body after the accident. He testified that the sample should not have changed significantly from the time of death, at approximately 6:30, to the time when the same was drawn, at approximately 10:30. Thus, the conclusion could be drawn that, at the time of death, Bosarge's alcohol level was at .08, or below the level of intoxication. However, when asked how much Bosarge's alcohol level should have changed from 3:30 a.m. when he was tested at .22% and 6:37 a.m., the time of the fatal accident, Dore said that he could not, as a clinical pathologist, make an estimate, but that an estimate should come from a toxicologist or a forensic pathologist. Dr. Dewey Lane, a surgeon who is chairman of Physicians Against Drunk Driving, later testified that based
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