Kansas
Stormont Vail doctor who removed wrong organ can be sued after tie in Kansas Supreme Court
A rare tie in the Kansas Supreme Court means a Stormont Vail Health patient will be allowed to continue her lawsuit against the Topeka hospital and a doctor who removed the wrong organ.
When Jeannine Williams-Davidson had a surgery to remove her adrenal gland at Stormont Vail, physician Nason Lui removed part of her pancreas instead.
The patient sued, but courts have been divided on whether you need to be a medical expert to decide that a doctor violated the standard of care by cutting out a chunk of a healthy organ while leaving untouched the one with a noncancerous tumor.
Medical expert not needed when common sense is enough
Kansas law typically requires plaintiffs to offer expert testimony in medical malpractice cases because jurors generally are not experts in medicine. But there is a common sense and knowledge exception that applies when a patient’s care was “so obviously lacking” and “the results are so bad” that it would be apparent to an average person.
Douglas County District Court previously ruled against the patient because she didn’t have a medical expert. That dismissed the claims without having a jury trial.
A divided three-judge panel of the Kansas Court of Appeals disagreed and reversed the decision in July.
“When the surgeon misidentifies and removes all or part of a healthy organ, leaving the organ the surgeon intended to operate on untouched, the common-knowledge exception alleviates the need for expert testimony to establish the standard of care or a breach of that standard,” wrote judges Amy Fellows Cline and Jacy J. Hurst.
Judge David E. Bruns dissented, arguing it shouldn’t apply because it was inadvertent.
“The average lay person would not have the knowledge necessary to determine whether this mistake rose to the level of a breach of the appropriate standard of care by a surgeon,” Bruns wrote. “In other words, I do not believe it is patently obvious that the bad result occurred due to a breach of reasonable care.”
The doctor and hospital then appealed to the Supreme Court.
More: Kansas court rules Stormont Vail doctor who removed the wrong organ can still be sued
Kansas Supreme Court tied
Ties are not common at the Kansas Supreme Court, which has seven justices. But it has happened in the past, at least as recently as two years ago, when a justice recused himself from a case that he had been an attorney on before joining the bench.
When a tie happens at an appellate court, the lower court ruling stands.
In this ruling, Justice Eric Rosen recused himself and the other six were equally divided. Justices Dan Biles, K.J. Wall and Melissa Taylor Standridge would have affirmed the Kansas Court of Appeals reversal of the Douglas County District Court. Chief Justice Marla Luckert and justices Caleb Stegall and Evelyn Wilson would have reversed the appeals court and sided with the district court.
Friday’s ruling didn’t include any legal reasoning from the two camps.
Attorneys argue over common knowledge
Prior to Friday’s ruling, the high court held oral arguments on Jan. 31.
Lui and Stormont Vail were represented by Cynthia J. Sheppeard, of Topeka law firm Goodell, Stratton, Edmonds & Palmer.
Sheppeard said that Lui and a second doctor who assisted on the laparoscopic surgery him would “testify that what happened sometimes happens, even with the best of care.” She said he admits he made a mistake, but a mistake doesn’t necessarily mean it was negligence.
“They were so close together, and the adrenal and the pancreas looked so much alike, and there was blood in the field, he’d been removing the adhesions,” she said. “Between the two of them, they thought they were removing the adrenal.”
Williams-Davidson and her husband, Jeffrey Davidson, were represented by Jason Belveal, of Belveal Law Office in Holton.
“I do believe that if you say to a person, I went in for surgery and my doctor left behind the diseased organ, cut out a healthy organ — or a big part of a healthy organ — any person off the street is going to go, ‘Yikes, something went wrong on that,’” Belveal said.
Belveal said a jury should get to decide, after hearing the facts of the case, whether that’s medical malpractice. He described opposition to common knowledge applying in this case as “elitist protection.”
“Is it justice for all, or is it justice for those folks who can afford an expert to come in and say, ‘No, this this is wrong,’” he said, adding that “at some point, we should trust the jurors to be able to make certain decisions.”
Jason Alatidd is a Statehouse reporter for the Topeka Capital-Journal. He can be reached by email at jalatidd@gannett.com. Follow him on X @Jason_Alatidd.
Tonight, the Kansas City Royals dismantled the Tampa Bay Rays in a cathartic 12-5 victory. It was a full-team showing, with Carter Jensen extending his hit streak to 14 games, Nick Loftin swatting a home run on a four-hit night, and Luinder Avila navigating his way through five tough innings of one-run ball in front of some of some incredibly bad infield defense.
But you’re here for Jac Caglianone, who ended the day with three hits and a pair of home runs. Here’s his first, which came immediately after Loftin’s home run in the first frame of the game and sounded like a thunderclap.
And here’s the other one, an arguably more impressive center-left shot to the deepest part of the ballpark.
To say that Caglianone has been on fire would not be accurate, because he is fire right now. Tonight’s gigantic dongs were his eighth and ninth of the month of June; they extended his hitting streak to five games and his home run streak to four games.
This was one of those games were so much happened that, paradoxically, nothing much happened, because each successive hit meant less and less as the score ballooned and ballooned. I mentioned the infield defense–Salvador Perez lost two popups, and the rest of the infield didn’t see them, either. That required Avila to essentially get five outs in one inning. It was really quite comical in hindsight, but groan-worthy in the moment for sure.
Pretty much everyone got involved in the offense. Lane Thomas and Starling Marte were the only two batters without a hit. Michael Massey, Perez, and Kameron Misner recorded doubles, which in addition to the home runs made six extra base hits. The Royals did a nice job totally putting the game away in the eighth inning against Steven Matz, who was just tossing batting practice out there.
Kansas City’s bullpen also did a nice job (mostly). It helps to have such a big lead, but Stephen Cruz and Matt Strahm pitched before the lead was quite as big as it was, and you know what? They both turned in clean innings! So, too, did Beck Way. Someone named “Connor Seabold” came in to pitch the ninth, and the Royals might as well have sent Tyler Tolbert out there. Seabold gave up a trio of runs, but the Royals closed it out.
At 34-46, the Royals are still closer to the American League basement than they are the penthouse. But have you looked at the AL right now? The current owners of the third Wild Card slot, the Toronto Blue Jays, don’t even have a .500 record. What a weird year.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) – Kansas City police say extra help from other departments is giving the agency more flexibility during World Cup-related events, matches and regular patrols across the city.
KCPD said officers from dozens of other departments are helping with safety efforts around major events, including watch parties, Fan Fest and crowds at Kansas City Stadium.
The department said officers from across Kansas and Missouri have stepped up to help. Officers from Oklahoma City and Ohio are also assisting, including mounted officers who brought horses.
Police said the extra staffing is needed because officers still have to respond to regular calls across the metro during the events. KCPD blocked vacation time this month to keep officers available.
Sgt. Jake Becchina with KCPD’s Media Relations Unit said people attending the events may notice officers from several agencies.
“If you walk through Fan Fest, you may see a dozen police officers from a dozen different departments that are here helping us out,” Becchina said.
Becchina said people have noticed the added police presence.
“Probably one of the most overwhelming themes or regular themes I hear is, ‘I feel safe here. I see a lot of police officers. Thank you guys for being here,’” Becchina said.
With the Netherlands playing Thursday, the Orange Bus and Army are en route, with a large parade planned that morning. Becchina said police are prepared for the crowds expected around the events.
Copyright 2026 KCTV. All rights reserved.
The Kansas Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at June 22, 2026, results for each game:
Winning Powerball numbers from June 22 drawing
17-19-21-45-48, Powerball: 13, Power Play: 2
Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Pick 3 numbers from June 22 drawing
Midday: 4-1-4
Evening: 7-0-5
Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning 2 By 2 numbers from June 22 drawing
Red Balls: 10-18, White Balls: 17-23
Check 2 By 2 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Lotto America numbers from June 22 drawing
12-13-35-41-52, Star Ball: 05, ASB: 02
Check Lotto America payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Super Kansas Cash numbers from June 22 drawing
08-13-17-21-24, Cash Ball: 14
Check Super Kansas Cash payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from June 22 drawing
07-08-20-24-42, Bonus: 05
Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your lottery prize
All Kansas Lottery retailers will redeem prizes up to $599. For prizes over $599, winners can submit winning tickets through the mail or in person at select Kansas Lottery offices.
By mail, send a winner claim form and your signed lottery ticket to:
Kansas Lottery Headquarters
128 N Kansas Avenue
Topeka, KS 66603-3638
(785) 296-5700
To submit in person, sign the back of your ticket, fill out a claim form, and deliver the form along with your signed lottery ticket to Kansas Lottery headquarters. 128 N Kansas Avenue, Topeka, KS 66603-3638, (785) 296-5700. Hours: 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes of any amount.
Check previous winning numbers and payouts at Kansas Lottery.
When are the Kansas Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 9:59 p.m. CT Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 10 p.m. CT Tuesday and Friday.
- Pick 3 Midday/Evening: 1:10 p.m. and 9:10 p.m. CT daily.
- 2 By 2: 9:30 p.m. CT daily.
- Lucky for Life: 9:38 p.m. CT daily.
- Lotto America: 9:15 p.m. CT Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Super Kansas Cash: 9:10 p.m. CT Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Millionaire for Life: 10:15 p.m. CT daily.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Kansas editor. You can send feedback using this form.
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