Opinion ID: 622643
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Mr. Brimer’s Death1

Text: On March 26, 2006, Kimberly and Matthew Brimer returned home after a weekend trip and found James Brimer lying on the kitchen floor. He was unresponsive. Ms. Brimer called 911. When medical personnel arrived, they pronounced her husband dead. A police officer at the scene observed dried “foam cap” on Mr. Brimer’s chin area and on his shirt. The officer also found a bottle of Soma (a muscle relaxant also known as carisoprodol) on the kitchen table. Thirty-three of the 100 capsules were missing from the bottle, which had been filled just two days earlier on March 24.2 Mr. Brimer’s physician, Dr. Christopher Klotz, reported to police that he had prescribed pain medication to Mr. Brimer. According to Dr. Klotz, Ms. Brimer usually administered the medication to her husband, but because she had been out of town, Mr. Brimer may have administered the medication himself and exceeded the recommended 1 The facts recounted here about Mr. Brimer’s death and in subsection B about LINA’s administrative review come from the district court’s opinions. See Brimer v. Life Ins. Co. of N. Am., No. 07-CV-453-GKF-PJC, 2010 WL 3607632, at  (N.D. Okla. Sept. 13, 2010) (Brimer I); Brimer v. Life Ins. Co. of N. Am., No. 07-CV-453-GKF-PJC, 2011 WL 650329, at  (N.D. Okla. Feb. 11, 2011) (Brimer II). 2 The district court found that, per Mr. Brimer’s prescription, a maximum of 24 pills were to be taken over the three-day period between the filling of the Soma prescription and Mr. Brimer’s death. See Brimer II, 2011 WL 650329, at  n.2. -2- amount. An autopsy was performed the next day. According to the medical examiner’s report, Mr. Brimer’s femoral blood tested positive for hydrocodone, codeine, carisoprodol, and meprobamate. His heart blood tested positive for diazepam, nordiazepam, and acetaminophen. The medical examiner noted that Mr. Brimer had a history of hypertension and back pain. The report concluded that the cause of death was “acute combined drug toxicity.” Brimer I, 2010 WL 3607632, at . Mr. Brimer’s death certificate listed the same immediate cause of death—acute combined drug toxicity due to the ingestion of codeine, diazepam, carisoprodol, and hydrocodone. The medical examiner’s report concluded that the manner of death was “accident.” Id.