Herb and Nancy Shera’s beloved Jack Russell Terrier, Laci, would have been 17 today.
Instead the retired Wilmington couple is still grieving and fighting for a change in state law after an N.C. State veterinarian misplaced a feeding tube, placing it in Laci’s lungs instead of her stomach, causing her death.
- Photo courtesy of the Sheras
- The Sheras commissioned this portrait of Laci, the Jack Russell Terrier who was irreplaceable to them.
The N.C. Industrial Court, hearing the case for a second time after the Sheras appealed the initial ruling, deemed that they are only due reimbursement for the procedure, $2,755,72, plus the cost of a new Jack Russell Terrier as determined through classified ads, $350.
“We all basically felt like their decision would be a ‘no shocker,’ but one can always hope that the right thing will be done,” the Sheras wrote in an e-mail. “We are on to the Appeals Court and pray to win.”
As the INDY has “>initial ruling, Deputy Commissioner George T. Glenn II, who heard the case in Durham, awarded only the cost of the final veterinary bill.
Attorney Calley Gerber, who represents the Sheras, plans to file the case with the Court of Appeals later today.
“The Commission talked about expanding intrinsic value to apply to companion animals, but in other cases when you read about intrinsic value you just apply it or you don’t,” she said. “We feel we’ve met the criteria of intrinsic value to apply. It’s not a matter of expanding the law, it’s applying the law that already exists.”
She added that she hopes this is an issue that the N.C. General Assembly will address in the future.
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