Doctor Saves Prospective Juror, Then This Happened
This is one of those feel-good stories, but it has a not-so-good twist.
A prospective juror in an Oakland courthouse was lucky a doctor was in the house when he suddenly collapsed. Dr. James Lilja and his nurse rushed to the man's side, administering CPR and shocking him with a defibrillator.
Paramedics soon arrived and transported the man to the hospital. The doctor stayed behind, however, because he was on trial for medical malpractice.
Medical Mistrial
The media reported that the doctor saved the man's life, but the plaintiff's attorney didn't like it. Attorney Robert Schock (you can't make this up) asked for a mistrial, and the judge granted the request.
"No good deed goes unpunished," Lilja said later.
Lilja is a gynecological oncologist practicing in San Jose and Fremont. A woman and her husband are suing him for negligent care.
Adding color to the backstory, the doctor used to be a punk rock drummer for the band Offspring. And the beat goes on ...
Successful Offspring
The band picked up mainstream success with hits such as "Come Out and Play," "Self Esteem," and "Pretty Fly (For a White Guy.)" Lilja played on "I'll Be Waiting," the band's debut single in 1986 before he went on to a career in medicine.
Lilja and his assistant were waiting in the Oakland courthouse for trial to start when the man collapsed. He hit his head and lost consciousness.
According to reports, the man did not have a pulse and was not breathing. After Lilja and his assistant administered care to him, his pulse returned but he remained unconscious.
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