Officer Hit With Tainted Blood Wins $250,000
A jury has awarded $250,000 to a Long Beach policeman who sued the county for emotional distress after he was hit in the eye with blood contaminated with the AIDS virus, his attorney said Wednesday.
The Superior Court jury also awarded homicide detective Ron Pavek’s wife $67,500.
John Murphy, Pavek’s attorney, said that although the detective has tested negative for the AIDS virus, Pavek fears that he could pass the disease on to his wife.
Pavek was splashed with the blood during a May, 1987, autopsy on a corpse infected with the HIV virus, which causes AIDS. At the time, Pavek was not given protective clothing or a mask, Murphy said.
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