June 18, 2013
Case of the 8-Month Erection, Jury Sides with Defendant
Kilian Melloy READ TIME: 1 MIN.
A jury in Delaware says there was no medical negligence in a penile implant procedure that the patient said left him with an 8-month erection.
The New Castle County Superior Court jury decided that urologist Dr. Thomas Desperito was not negligent in the procedure he performed in December 2009 on 44-year-old truck driver Daniel Metzgar.
The News Journal of Wilmington reported (http://delonline.us/11KM4Z8 ) that during the weeklong trial, Metzgar testified that his constant erection drew taunts from family and friends, as well as stares, slurs and threats from strangers. He testified that the procedure caused him to withdraw from much of life, wearing long, baggy sweat pants and a long shirt to hide his condition.
Metzgar had the prosthesis removed in August 2010, after tubing from the device punctured his scrotum.
Kilian Melloy serves as EDGE Media Network's Associate Arts Editor and Staff Contributor. His professional memberships include the National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association, the Boston Online Film Critics Association, The Gay and Lesbian Entertainment Critics Association, and the Boston Theater Critics Association's Elliot Norton Awards Committee.
