St. Louis Injury Lawyer Blog

A St. Louis area man who lost four fingers in a chop saw accident work has filed a personal injury and product liability suit against his employer and the product manufacturer.

The man, who had worked as a wood pallet delivery man, was using a chop saw to cut boards used to build wooden pallets. Due to negligent maintenance, the piece that was cut would occasionally become stuck on a roller beneath the blade. This circumstance required the employee to manually flick the wood into a box below.

The incident occurred when he flicked the wood, and the blade came out of its hood, catching his glove, and pulling his hand into the 22 inch blade. According to industry experts which WWF&G attorney Michael P. Glisson consulted for this case, the loss of his finger may have been prevented by providing more training for the employee, not requiring him to wear a glove, not using faulty machinery or fixing the chop blade's setup.

Due to the small number of employees hired by the pallet-making company, the case is not eligible for a workers' compensation claim. Trial is scheduled for summer 2011 in St. Charles County.

According to a study published by the U.S. Library of Medicine, circular saw hand injuries are usually more serious than other hand injuries and often take more time to treat. In addition, those injured by saws are more likely to receive disability pension than people with other hand injuries.

Continue reading "St. Louis Area Man Files Suit Against Employer After Losing Four Fingers" »

A tree trimming service employee sued John Deere and ERB Equipment Company of Illinois, Inc. for unsafe design of a tractor.

The product liability suit, filed in June of 2006, followed a November 2002 injury in which a man was using a John Deere bobcat with a tree grappler attachment to remove trees and stumps. Holding a nearby handle, the plaintiff was standing on the grappler when the bobcat pitched forward. The man fell off the equipment and was run over.

The plaintiff alleged that John Deere was negligent in its design of the bobcat, which encouraged users to stand in a place that put them at risk for falling. Other employees had stood on the grappler, believing that the placement of a handle near the scoop meant they could safely stand there.

Represented by Michael Glisson from the law office of Williamson, Webster, Falb & Glisson, the plaintiff received a settlement by mediation.

According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, plaintiffs received favorable outcomes in product liability lawsuits only 34% of the time from 2002 to 2003, as compared to 57% success in car accident cases.

Continue reading "John Deere Successfully Sued in Product Liability Case" »

Residents from St. Clair County, Illinois have joined other plaintiffs from the states of New York and Louisiana in a product liability lawsuit against Pfizer, a New York City-based pharmaceutical company.

The St. Clair County plaintiff claimed that Pfizer's anti-epilepsy drug, Dilantin, caused her son to develop a chronic skin disorder that led to a his death. The disorder is referred to as Stevens Johnson Syndrome and Toxic Epidural Necrolysis in an article by the St. Clair Record.

The disorder causes skin discoloration, the loss of hair and nails, sharply decreased eyesight and organ damage.

The plaintiffs complained that Pfizer knowingly continued to market and distribute its product despite the knowledge that Dilantin caused extreme adverse effects to a portion of its users. As a result of Pfizer's negligence to inform the general public about the potentially deadly side effects, the St. Clair County, New York and Louisana plaintiffs have dealt with disability, disfigurement, pain and loss of love and affection in the cases of death.

Pfizer allegedly has violated marketing and health care liability laws and has paid billions of dollars in fines for civil and criminal lawsuits. According to a fact sheet compiled by the U.S. Department of Justice and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Pfizer's $2.3 billion settlement is the largest in the Justice Department's history of handing health care fraud cases.

Continue reading "St. Clair County Illinois Residents Join in Case Against Pfizer" »

In 2004, Pamela Hoppe, a Granite City Illinois resident, became an LA Weight Loss client. The center-based weight loss system distributed supplements to Hoppe as part of their weight loss program. However, after following the program for three months, she began to experience symptoms of liver failure.

By August of 2004, Hoppe was rushed to a local hospital with jaundice, nausea and abdominal fullness. She was immediately transferred to St. Louis University Hospital, where she was diagnosed with liver failure. Almost exactly four months after beginning her LA Weight Loss program, Hoppe died while waiting for a liver transplant.

In 2005, Hoppe's sister, Carolyn Schur filed a suit against the weight loss center. As the administrator of her sister's estate and legal guardian of the daughter she left behind, Schur sued LA Weight Loss for negligence, wrongful death, and other charges, claiming they neglected to properly test the supplements and failed to warn clients of their health risks. Now, nearly five years since the suit was filed, LA Weight Loss settled with Schur for $700,000.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is responsible for supervising the safety of food and medicine, including diet pills. Many weight loss supplements have not been approved by the FDA, in fact, their website contains a constant list of warnings against both specific diet pills and commonly used ingredients.

Continue reading "Woman Wins Settlement from LA Weight Loss in Wrongful Death Suit" »

Last week, the Cardiac Science Corporation notified the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) of the voluntary recall of approximately 12,200 automated external defibrillators (AEDs). Manufactured between October 19, 2009 and January 15, 2010, the devices began to fail under certain conditions, though these conditions were not listed. The company stated that the failure is being attributed to a manufacturing defect.

While the company claims that it has not received reports of the problem from external sources or customers- the problem was found through internal testing- a defect like this can lead to serious medical complications, including death. AEDs are used to treat victims thought to be experiencing cardiac arrest; the devices attach to the victim and then provide prompts to guide rescuers through rehabilitation steps. The devices also analyze heart rhythms and determine if defibrillation shock is necessary for resuscitation.

Continue reading "Medical Product Manufacturer Announces Recall of AED Devices" »

Over a week ago, Toyota raised concerns when it announced the recall of 2.3 million vehicles. These concerns were validated with the company's announcement later in the week of a massive recall in China, culminating with the announcement Friday that it also intended to recall 1.8 million vehicles in Europe as a "preventative measure". By this time, the company had also issued an order to halt production of the eight-best selling models in the U.S.

Citing problems with floor mat entrapment and sticky gas pedals that cause unexpected acceleration, Toyota's recall numbers have jumped to almost 9.5 billion since late last year. Both consumers and dealers were affected when Toyota halted the sales of the 2009 and 2010 RAV4, 2009 and 2010 Corolla, 2009 and 2010 Matrix, 2005 to 2010 Avalon, 2010 Highlander, 2007 to 2010 Tundra and 2008 to 2010 Sequoia.

These actions drew the attention of Congress, prompting the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform to schedule a hearing next week to investigate the government's response to Toyota's problems. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has an early warning system in place that provides statistical forecasting to identify trends and help signal problems such as the ones Toyota is experiencing. In this case, the system did not recognize the problem, causing the House to request extensive data reports from both the NHTSA and Toyota.

Continue reading "Toyota Expands Recall on Top-Sellers, Honda Issues Voluntary Recall" »

An automobile accident took the lives of a young Godfrey, Illinois, couple on Sunday December 20. Nicole and Chad Thorpe, both 27, and parents to a young two year old son, were tragically killed on Humbert road near Richland Woods Dr.. It appeared their 2007 Ford Edge ran off the road, struck a tree and flipped over. Sheriff's Deputies said the vehicle was engulfed in flames when they arrived on the scene.

What caused the vehicle to swerve off the road is still unknown. The Madison County Sheriff's Department is conducting an investigation into the possible cause. Both occupants suffered severe burns and were identified by dental records Monday. The coroner stated both victims died from smoke inhalation.

The car apparently was traveling north on Humbert Road and drove off the east side of the road before striking the tree. At this point, there is no evidence or report as to why the vehicle caught on fire. According to the National Fire Protection Agency (NFPA), there were an average of 356,000 vehicle fires and 512 civilian deaths reported between 1998 and 2002. Per the NFPA report, 3 out of every 5 passenger road vehicle fire deaths occurred in fires caused by collisions or overturns.

Continue reading "Auto accident on Humbert Rd. kills young couple" »

A Granite City, Illinois man was injured using PureSleep's stop snoring solution in July of 2008. The product is a dental device which is worn while sleeping, to prevent snoring.

The user puts the device in hot water so it is malleable to fit your teeth. Once this is done the device fits securely in the mouth.

Here, the problem arose when the device was removed the next morning, it carried away the man's crown from a back molar. He now has to go to a dental specialist to undergo treatment to have a new crown put in-----costing significant dollars.

A claim has been made based on a product liability theory----that the product was unsafe as normally used and there was a failure to warn that this could happen.

Continue reading "Granite City, Illinois Man Injured by Stop Snoring Product" »

After using Zicam for congestion, a Missouri woman suffered permanent loss of smell and taste. Her doctors attributed it to the use of Zicam.

The FDA has alerted consumers that Zicam Cold Remedy Nasal Gel, Zicam Cold Remedy Nasal Swabs, and Zicam Cold Remedy Swabs, Kids Size-----have all been associated with long lasting or permanent loss of smell. These products are marketed by Matrixx Initiatives and contain zinc.

Many people have complained of loss of smell with just one use of the product. Loss of smell is often associated with loss of taste. Further, loss of smell can lead to dangerous situations where there is failure to smell smoke, gas, or spoiled food products.

If you or family members have similar problems seek medical attention immediately from an ear, nose, and throat specialist; save the product, any container and receipt. Check with the FDA website for specifics.

Continue reading "Missouri Woman Injured Using Zicam Medication" »

WWF&G recently obtained a settlement from Gatorade for an Alton, Illinois man.

Our client had purchased a bottle of Gatorade, when starting to drink it, noticed a foreign substance in the liquid resembling a thick gray cloud.

Fortunately, the client stopped ingesting the Gatorade and contacted WWF&G for assistance.

A claim was made against the manufacturer and an early settlement satisfactory to our client was achieved. If you encounter a foreign substance in your food or drink, it is advisable to preserve the product as evidence, as well as any other evidence to support your potential claim, such as a product receipt, packaging or photos of the evidence. If you feel ill as a result of consumption, you should seek medical attention promptly.

Continue reading "Alton, Illinois Man Versus Gatorade" »