This is simply unacceptable. This botulism outbreak, frankly any outbreak that sickens babies, should never have happened. We can do more to protect the most vulnerable. The stork in “operation stork speed” clearly flew into a brick wall and crash landed. This child’s parents bought ByHeart Infant Formula at a Walmart. ByHeart utilized powdered organic […]
NBC17.com also did a story about my Crossroads Farm Petting Zoo lawsuit. From their article: “Twenty-four outbreaks have been linked to fairs and petting zoos since 1995,” said attorney William Marler, of the Seattle law firm Marler Clark. “Any operator of a petting zoo should be well-versed in the ways of preventing E. coli infections […]
As the Associated Press reported yesterday, I filed my lawsuit against Crossroads Farm Petting Zoo Friday on behalf of my clients whose young children got HUS from E. coli contamination at the North Carolina State Fair. Some of these families have more than $100,000 in medical bills, so this won’t be a cheap lawsuit. Not […]
North Carolina health officials announced Thursday that the Crossroads Farm Petting Zoo exhibition at the state fair in October. This was a heartbreaking outbreak — one that caused 15 young children to get HUS. Four out of the 15 are still on kidney dialysis. Half of the 108 people infected with E. coli were 5 […]
Another news article on my two most recent Chi-Chi’s lawsuits, on behalf of Bennie Martino and Angelo Palitti. Chris Osher of the Tribune-Review reports: The lawsuits, both filed by Seattle lawyer William Marler, allege that the method Chi-Chi’s used to store green onions, which health officials have identified as the likely culprits, essentially created “hepatitis […]
Lawsuits against Chi-Chi’s Mexican Restaurant, the center of a major hepatitis A outbreak last year, continue to trickle in. As KDKA.com reported: Two more federal lawsuits were filed this week against the chain for making what one attorney calls “hepatitis soup.” Bennie Martino, of Monaca, and Angelo Palitti, of Aliquippa, say they too were sickened […]
I was featured in the Food Protection Report (December 2004 Vol. 20 No. 12), talking about E. coli O157:H7 and fair outbreaks, specifically regarding the prevention measures taken after the 2002 Lane County outbreak in Oregon… and how kids are still getting sick, even when the fair-runners do everything right. “I think counties and states […]
To the editor: Regarding the recent outbreak of E. coli across the state, the blame now apparently rests squarely on the shoulders of departing Commissioner Britt Cobb and the Department of Agriculture under his watch. Mr. Cobb and the state agency he oversaw are charged with “… controlling and eliminating animal diseases and ensuring general […]
Chris Cline of the Daily Journal wrote a moving article about two-year-old Emilie Allen, of Bonne Terre, who contracted E. coli in September and is still suffering complications. She was in the hospital for nearly two months after suffering kidney failure. She was on dialysis until October 19. According to the article, the St. Francois […]
As Randi Bjornstad of The Register-Guard reported in the article Back from the Brink: Families of children who contracted E. coli count blessings — and bills, I’ve advised my clients to drop their lawsuits regarding the E. coli outbreak at the 2002 Lane County Fair. Not an easy decision, for me or for my clients, […]
The News-Observer ran an article a few days ago about 3-year-old Matthew Baldwin, who picked up a nearly deadly case of E. coli from a 45-minute visit to the petting zoo in October. Matthew was the first of more than 100 people sickened by E. coli last month after attending the North Carolina State Fair. […]
There’s nothing more American than the local fair. Countless millions visit them each year for the rides, the delectable goodies, and for some up close and personal — sometimes even hands on — time with the farm animals. What fair-goers are finding out though, and often through devastating illness rather than education, is that the […]
The Charlotte Observer in an article this week said cases of E. coli infection have tripled since last week to 112 as N.C. health officials narrowed their search for the source of bacteria to last month’s State Fair. State epidemiologist Dr. Jeffrey Engel told the media that they’re investigating all areas where people have contact […]
Christopher Snowbeck of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette did a story yesterday about my clients Richard and Linda Miller, two of the 660 people sickened with hepatitis A in last year’s Chi Chi’s outbreak. Snowbeck’s article Hepatitis still hurts reports: Tomorrow marks the single day on which the greatest number of outbreak patients — more than 50 […]
As Sarah Avery reported for newsobserver.com, E. coli cases keep increasing in North Carolina. So far, 24 cases have been confirmed and 33 cases are being studied to see whether the cases are related. The most common link among the people who are sick is a trip to the State Fair last month — in […]
I had a nice chat with Mike Keefe-Feldman of the Missoula Independent about John Munsell, the owner of Montana Quality Foods meat packing plant, who is suing the USDA. As the Independent puts it, it’s a lawsuit which “if successful, could bring about the most significant changes to America’s meat-inspection system since the Federal Meat […]