Glasser | U.S. Attorney's Office SCRANTON – The U.S. government has denied liability for claims made by the parents of a newborn baby girl who suffered a skull fracture at birth and resulting brain damage, due to alleged medical negligence on the part of the obstetrician. Andrew Desher and Rylee Smyth (individually and as parents of K.D., a minor) of Hawley first filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania on Feb. 10 versus The United States of America. “This is a federal tort claim action for monetary damages sustained by plaintiffs arising out of the personal injuries to K.D., a minor, as a result of sub-standard – and therefore negligent – medical and hospital care by Eric Rittenhouse, M.D., a covered agent, servant and/or employee of the United States of America and the Wayne Memorial Community Health Centers, Honesdale, Pennsylvania, starting April 10, 2019,” the suit said.