In its verdict, the jury specified that $600,000 of the award stemmed from the fire department's actions and that $2.3 million involved Bastien's work.

During the settlement negotiations, the D.C. government persuaded Margie Hunter to drop her claim against Bastien. That means that his name will not be submitted to a federal registry that keeps track of medical malpractice cases, sources said. Hunter, 53, said she has no immediate plans for the $1.75 million, but hopes to be able to provide for her granddaughter's college education and help her daughter. On a broader level, she said, she hoped her son's death will take on a special meaning.

"I hope that everybody in this city, regardless of race, creed, color or gender, will be treated equally," she said, fighting tears. "No one should have to suffer because they're different than other people. I hope this case would reflect that."

Death Suit Costs City $2.9 Million

Mother of Transgendered Man Wins Case

Maria Elena Fernandez Washington Post Staff Writer
December 12, 1998; Page C1

Tyrone Michael Hunter died without his dignity three years ago, but a D.C. Superior Court jury yesterday helped his mother honor his life by awarding her nearly $2.9 million in her wrongful death lawsuit against the city. "I know he was in pain; I know he was scared. But I know he is smiling now," said his mother, Margie Hunter. "He is smiling because I did the right thing."

Hunter died on Aug. 7, 1995, after a car accident and a series of humiliating events, his mother charged in her lawsuit against the D.C. Fire Department and D.C. General Hospital.

Hunter, a 24-year-old hairdresser, lived his life as a woman. He dressed in women's clothes, wore makeup and took hormone injections to develop breasts. He never officially changed his name, but was known as Tyra Hunter for almost 10 years. Eyewitnesses testified during the five-week trial that a rescue worker who cut open Hunter's pants at the accident scene recoiled in surprise, made crass remarks and stopped treatment for several minutes after discovering Hunter's male genitals.

The jury did not individually blame firefighter Adrian Williams, who was named in the lawsuit and who testified that he cut Hunter's pants. Instead, the jury held the department liable for $600,000 for the remarks and for withholding treatment.

"Tyra had a dream," said Dee Curry, a member of Transgenders Against Discrimination and Defamation who was in court for the verdict. "She didn't want to be the stereotypical transgendered person. I always admired her for that. That's why her death shook the community the way it did. The humiliation behind it was devastating to us."

The jury, made up of six women and two men, awarded nearly $2.3 million to Margie Hunter    in her claims that D.C. General Hospital emergency room doctor Joseph Andre Bastien failed to diagnose Hunter's injuries and follow nationally accepted standards of care. The lawsuit alleged in part that Bastien misread X-rays that are now missing, decided against inserting a chest tube to drain blood that pooled near Hunter's heart and did not give Hunter four units of blood that were available.

Outside the courthouse yesterday, Margie Hunter said she hopes that Bastien is fired and that he "goes back to school and gets certified before he touches anyone." Bastien was not in court for the verdict.

While preparing for the trial, Margie Hunter's attorney, Richard F. Silber, said he discovered that five of the eight attending emergency room physicians at D.C. General were not certified and, more important, not even eligible to take the medical board exams.

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