Metro Atlanta Recovery Residences Settles In $77.6M Wrongful Death Suit

MARR is a deceiving name; it is a Georgia-based treatment center.

Law360 (April 10, 2025, 10:52 PM EDT) -- The family of a man who died after being hit by multiple vehicles on a Georgia interstate has settled their lawsuit against the Doraville addiction rehabilitation center that abruptly discharged him days before his death.

A DeKalb County jury awarded the family of Nicholas Carusillo more than $77 million at trial in August 2022, but records show Metro Atlanta Recovery Residences asked a trial court to reduce that judgment. That bid failed, at which point MARR asked the Georgia Court of Appeals to review the trial court's denial of their request in May.

However, before the appellate court had a chance to do so, MARR filed an unopposed motion to remand the case to state court for approval of a settlement, according to case records. The appellate court agreed to do so on Tuesday.

"Appellants in the above-styled case have filed an unopposed motion to remand on the ground that the parties have reached an agreement to settle the case, which requires judicial approval," the appellate court's order said. "The motion is hereby granted."

Should the settlement not be approved, the appellate court said MARR can revive its appeal by filing a new notice of appeal in trial court.

Representatives for MARR and the Carusillo family did not immediately respond to requests for comment Thursday.

Records show 29-year-old Nicholas Carusillo died in September 2017, less than 60 hours after his family said he was forced out of MARR without the medication needed to manage his bipolar disorder. He was hit by several vehicles on Interstate 85 in metro Atlanta.

The Carusillo family filed its wrongful death lawsuit against the facility and those who were responsible for his care at the facility in 2019.

The family argued Nicholas Carusillo, who was formally diagnosed with bipolar disorder by the time he was 20, was stable when he arrived at MARR. However, a week into his stay, they said a facility doctor took him off lithium, one of the drugs he took to manage his symptoms, despite warnings from his family and therapist that he should keep taking the medication.

Nicholas Carusillo was then forced out of the facility two weeks after that, records show, for violating a rule related to cellphone use. He initially entered into a sober living facility, but went missing and was not found again until after his death on Sept. 22.

In its filings in the underlying case, MARR argued they only discontinued Nicholas Carusillo's lithium treatment after he complained of side effects. He was discharged from the facility after knowingly violating several facility rules and being warned that he would be discharged if it happened again, MARR said.

A DeKalb County jury in late August 2022 found Nicholas Carusillo's death was proximately caused by MARR's negligent training of its employees. The Carusillo family was awarded just over $10 million for their son's pain and suffering, $55 million for the value of his life, $1 million in punitive damages, just over $11 million in attorney fees and $210,000 in expenses for a total of $77,596,162.50.

The case is Metro Atlanta Recovery Residences Inc. et al. v. The Estate of Nicholas Carusillo et al., case number A25A0063, in the Georgia Court of Appeals.