Some states limit the initial lawsuit to actual damages (usually provable medical costs). Once the case goes to trial, a jury can find in favor of the victim and assign punitive damages. This is how the infamous hot coffee case worked. The lady suffered third degree burns, the jury found out that McDonald's had injured a bunch of people with boiling coffee and been warned about it a few more times, and the jury said that $28K wasn't enough and awarded $3M.
I'd imagine something similar here if this went to trial.