Jury selection day in the Oconee Common Pleas Court

Jury selection was in progress today in the Oconee Common Pleas Court for a case alleging medical malpractice. Plaintiff in the case is Oconee resident Camille Hess; the defendants are Dr. Miles McGuff of Blue Ridge Emergency Physicians and the Oconee Medical Center. The plaintiff side contends that the treatment of a detached retina led to the loss of Hess’s sight in her left eye. The original 2016 lawsuit named Oconee Medical Center was a co-defendant, but last week Judge Lawton McIntosh granted the hospital’s motion for a partial summary judgment on the question of claims of “independent negligence.” The order does not affect Hess’s claims against OMC arising out of the care provided by Dr. McGuff. A court officer predicts it’s a trial that could stretch into next week.