Herpes Infection Lawsuit Awards $900,000 To Oregon Woman

Woman Awarded $900,000 For Herpes Infection
Court Judge Gavel with real 100 dollar bills as support surface. Analogy for corruption and power in the justice system.
Court Judge Gavel with real 100 dollar bills as support surface. Analogy for corruption and power in the justice system.

A jury awarded an Oregon woman $900,000 after her date allegedly gave her herpes.

The decision came after four days of testimony and two hours of deliberation in a Multnomah County courtroom, the Oregonian reported.

The plaintiff, a 49-year-old woman from Beaverton, met the defendant, a 69-year-old retired dentist, on an Internet dating website in 2010. The two went on three dates together and on the fourth they had sex. Roughly 11 days later, the plaintiff had a herpes outbreak, it was revealed in court.

During testimony in the case, the woman said she had asked the defendant to wear a condom. She said he agreed but removed it, without her knowledge, before the act was finished. Afterward, he allegedly told her he had herpes.

The plaintiff said she has since experienced repeated outbreaks and has suffered from depression as a result.

The defendant testified he did not know he was contagious, according to the Associated Press. The man's attorney, Shawn Lillegren, argued that the plaintiff might have contracted the infection from someone else. And besides, she knew the risk, he said.

"Grow up. Come on. You're an adult. He's an adult. They had sex," Lillegren said, according to the Oregonian. "The point is she is not some little innocent victim."

The jury disagreed.

"We all felt he should have told her -- he had the responsibility to tell her," juror Noah Brimhall told the Oregonian.

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