A federal jury awarded two families $15 million in damages for the deaths of two residents of a Billings long-term care facility in the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The jury ruled that Canyon Creek Memory Care and its corporate parent, Koelsch Senior Communities, were liable for the deaths of Mary Simons and Robert Petersen through neglect.
Canyon Creek must pay each family $132,000, while Koelsch is responsible for paying just over $7 million to each family, according to the family’s defense attorneys. The award included punitive damages.
In addition, the jury decided that Canyon Creek Memory Care was not dishonest about its Covid outbreak with the family of a third victim, Elizabeth Guilford.
The families of the three residents sued the facility in 2022, alleging that Koelsch Senior Communities, which is based in Olympia, Washington, failed to properly staff Canyon Creek, leading to neglect in resident care and poor living conditions.
Seventeen people died of Covid-19 during the outbreak there.
Billings-based attorney John Heenan is representing the families of the three victims. U.S. District Judge Susan Watters is presiding.
Lawyers for Koelsch provided a statement:
"We appreciate the jury's careful consideration throughout the trial. We are reviewing the verdict with counsel and evaluating our next steps. Our commitment to providing compassionate, high-quality care to the residents and families we serve remains unchanged,” the statement read.
Related:
Families wait for verdict in negligence case against Canyon Creek Memory Care in Billings
