$12 Million Settlement for Peanut Butter Contamination

A settlement of $12 million has been approved by a federal judge to be distributed among victims of the peanut butter salmonella contamination that started nearly two years ago. The settlement would address personal injury claims brought by about 120 people, including nine wrongful death lawsuits.
The lawsuits were filed against Peanut Corp. of America, based in Lynchburg, which has filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy as a result of the nationwide food poisoning outbreak. The amount of money each plaintiff will receive from the settlement varies greatly, from $2 million to under $50,000. Most will get less than $100,000. The 2008-2009 food poisoning was linked to illnesses in more than 700 people. The contamination was traced back to unsanitary plant conditions, and it has been alleged that PCA was aware of the problem but distributed the tainted products anyway.

Wrongful Death in Drowning Incident

The parents of 16-year-old, Jesus “Jesse” Prado, who drowned almost four months ago in the Ironwood High School pool in Glendale, Ariz., have filed a wrongful death claim. Prado died two days after a classmate pulled him from the pool’s deep end. Prado's family is seeking $26 million in damages from the city of Glendale and the Peoria Unified School District and more than $170,000 in medical expenses plus $10,000 in funeral expenses.

$3.7 Million Dollar Wrongful Death Lawsuit Filed

The family of Lindsay Leonard has filed a wrongful death lawsuit for $3.7 million against the city of Portland, Oregon. “Leonard was crossing a street in 2009 when she was hit and killed by a passing car, and her family is claiming that a streetlight above the crosswalk was not lit, the lawsuit said. Additionally, the lawsuit claims crosswalk markings were in "disrepair" and that the city had known about the potentially hazardous issues at the intersection for at least a year prior to the collision.” In addition to naming the city of Portland as a defendant, the lawsuit also names Portland General Electric (PGE) as responsible for the unlit streetlight, the driver of the vehicle - who was not charged by police in the incident - and the driver's company, which owned the car.

Three Car Accident Leaves One Injured

18-year-old, Kristopher Lee Sweigart, was driving his Chrysler convertible when he struck a guard rail and then the back of a semi-trailer truck due to him not being able to reduce his speed as he approached a construction zone on the highway. A third vehicle, a 1995 Nissan driven by Sylvestre Sanchez-Garcia, 18, was able to avoid the other two vehicles, police said, but his vehicle spun around several times before landing in a ditch. According to the report, Sweigart had to be extricated from the vehicle and was taken to Carle Foundation Hospital in Urbana, where he was listed in good condition Wednesday.

Wrongful Death with Assisted Living Facility

Woods Services, a facility that provides residential, educational and vocational supports for children and adults with special needs, is facing a wrongful death situation after one of its residents with severe autism was left inside a van parked at the facility for over five hours resulting in his death. “20-year-old,Brian Nevins, of Queens, New York, died of hyperthermia after he and several others from the center returned from a trip to the Sesame Place theme park, according to Bucks County Coroner Dr. Joseph Campbell.” According to reports, a male counselor escorted two clients to their residences after they returned from the trip. The second counselor took one client back to the residence but left Nevins behind. Nevins was seated in the far rear seat of the van. Temperatures Saturday reached 97 degrees. The heat index for the area reached triple digits.

Portable Baby Recliners Recalled

On July 26th the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), in cooperation with Baby Matters LLC, is issuing a recall of 30,000 Nap Nanny portable baby recliners. “The product is a portable recliner designed for sleeping, resting and playing. It includes a foam base with an inclined indentation for the infant to sit, along with a fitted fabric cover and a three point harness. The first generation model does not have “D”-rings for the harness.” The CPSC is investigating a report of a 4-month-old girl from Michigan who died in the product as it was being used in the crib. According to preliminary reports, the infant was in the harness, but found hanging over the side of the product. She was caught between the Nap Nanny and the crib bumper.
According to the press release, “Infants can partially fall or hang over the side of the Nap Nanny even when the harness is in use. This situation can be worse if the Velcro strap, located inside the Nap Nanny are not properly attached to the “D”-rings located on the foam, or if consumers are using the first generation model Nap Nanny that was sold without “D”-rings.” The products were sold at toy and children’s retail stores nationwide and on the web, including at the company website, www.napnanny.com, from January 2009 through July 2010. They retailed at approximately $130.

Medical Malpractice Suit Goes to Trial

In 2003 Maria Storm and her husband, Douglas Storm, sued Dr. Patrick Zimmerman claiming, “he failed to properly diagnose Maria’s skin cancer when he removed a lesion from her back in 1999.” In 2005 Maria Storm died of cancer. Wednesday morning testimony got under way in the second trial of Maria’s medical malpractice suit over the diagnosis of her skin cancer. The case was originally tried in January 2007, with the jury returning a verdict for Zimmerman. However, the plaintiff successfully appealed to have the verdict thrown out after one of the case's original jurors lied about his role in two pending Madison County lawsuits during voir dire. In opening statements, plantiff’s attorney Rex Carr, stressed the testimony of several other doctors that would prove Zimmerman, a Collinsville family practice doctor, failed to meet the standard of care when he treated Maria Storm more than 10 years ago. "She was told not to worry about it and she didn't," Carr said.