Personal Injury Law News & Recall Articles

LA Times,"Birth defect-antidepressant, including Paxil, link found"

LA Times, "Recall of Imported Tires is Sought"

         Federal regulators are asking the New Jersey company, Foreign Tire, to recall as many as 450,000 imported tires because the product was blamed for an accident that killed two people last year. More...

MSNBC.com, "Teen girl's feet severed while on thrill ride; Limbs cut above ankles at Kentucky Six Flags amusement park, officials say"

          Six Flags has shut down four thrill rides at parks around the country after a gruesome accident at an amusement park in Louisville. A 13-year-old girl's feet were severed just above the ankles Thursday as she rode the Superman Tower of Power ride, park officials said. The ride lifts passengers 177 feet straight up, then drops 154 feet, reaching a speed of 54 mph, according to the park's Web site. More...

Associated Press, "Wyeth Faces Recall of Infant Formula in the Philippines"

          The Philippine government has ordered the recall of millions of cans of infant formula made by U.S.-based company Wyeth because they may have been contaminated at a Philippine warehouse during a storm last year, officials said Wednesday. The Bureau of Food and Drugs served the order on Tuesday, saying up to 4.3 million cans and cartons of Wyeth's powdered baby milk may have been affected. More...

San Francisco Chronicle, "Girl in ConAgra Salmonella Lawsuit Gets Kidney"

          An 11-year-old girl whose family says she became ill after eating peanut butter contaminated with salmonella received a kidney donated by her father on Monday. Krystina Brugh and her father, John Brugh Jr., were both doing well after more than four hours of surgery at University of Illinois Medical Center at Chicago, hospital spokeswoman Sherri McGinnis Gonzalez said. More...

Cincinati Enquirer, "Butter-chemical bill unveiled; Lawmakers hope to force OSHA to act on Diacetyl Dangers"

          Frustrated with what they say is foot-dragging by the Bush administration, 14 Democratic members of Congress have introduced a bill aimed at lessening worker exposure to a potentially deadly chemical used to make butter flavorings. The chemical, called diacetyl, replicates the flavor of butter in popcorn and other foods and was the subject of a May 27 Enquirer article. It is not banned, and no exposure limits have been set in production plants, but lawmakers, unions and occupational-health experts have called for establishment of controls on diacetyl. More...

Insurance News.net, "Diacetyl Butter Flavoring Dangers: Food and Commercial Workers Applaud Congressional Effort to Force OSHA to Do Its Job"

          The UFCW applauds Congressional efforts to force the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to regulate Diacetyl--a dangerous chemical that has killed at least three workers and injured hundreds of others. Today, U.S. Rep. Lynn Woolsey (D-CA) introduced H.R. 2693, a bill which would compel OSHA to issue a standard regulating worker exposure to this deadly chemical. More...

Sacramento Bee, "Debate grows in beef recalls; Critics dispute claim that string of alerts shows system works"

          A "creeping recall" of ground beef and a spate of other recalls have alarmed food safety advocates who fear a breakdown in the food monitoring system, but health regulators say the alerts signal the system is working. Over the weekend, after Arizona health officials found E. coli in a ground beef sample there, a Los Angeles area food processor vastly expanded its recall to 5.7 million pounds of more than 100 fresh and frozen meat products. While this recall is by far the largest in recent months, it is not the only such announcement. More...

Denver Post, "Better science, '02 case led to faster action in meat recall"

          Advances in science coupled with lessons learned from a 2002 incident involving tainted beef from a Greeley plant helped transform a relatively small recall of bacteria-tainted meat last week into a recall affecting millions of pounds in 12 states. "The science of identifying outbreaks is much improved, and we are learning of them much faster," said Caroline Smith-DeWaal, food safety director at the Center for Science in the Public Interest in Washington. More...

CNN Money, "UPDATE: United Food Expands Recall Of Possibly Tainted Beef"

          United Food Group LLC said it is voluntarily expanding a recall of possibly contaminated beef to include all fresh and frozen ground- beef products produced at its plant from April 6 through April 20. The Vernon, Calif., company said the recall involves some 5.3 million pounds that may have been contaminated with the E. coli O157:H7 bacteria. More...

WKRN.com, (Nashville, TN), "Government Recalls Nearly 6 Million Pounds Of Beef"

          Over the weekend, the government ordered the recall of nearly six million pounds of beef that may be contaminated with dangerous E. Coli bacteria. This is the third recall in the space of just one week. There have been 14 cases of E. Coli poisoning linked to the tainted meat from California based United Food Group. United Food Group originally recalled about half a million pounds but expanded the recall over the weekend to 5.7 million pounds of meat that was shipped to eleven states. More...

Inside BayArea.com, "State issues warning on tainted meat; Certain brands of ground beef with sell-by date of April 30 may be contaminated with E. coli"

          Consumers should not eat certain brands of ground beef sold at a variety of chain grocery stores in April because the meat could contain a dangerous form of E. coli, state health officials warned Thursday. The recalled brands are Moran's All Natural, Miller Meat Company, Stater Brothers Markets, Inter-American Products or Basha's ground beef with a sell-by or freeze-by date of April 29 or April 30 or a produced-on date of April 30. More...

New York Times, "FDA Issues Strictest Warning on Diabetes Drugs Avandia and Actos"

          The Food and Drug Administration has called for the toughest safety warning on two diabetes drugs, Avandia and Actos, whose health risks have become a focus of Congressional concern. That decision, disclosed on Wednesday by the FDA commissioner at a packed House hearing, comes more than a year after the agency's safety reviewers strongly recommended just such a step. And it occurs amid a Congressional investigation into why the agency delayed its warnings about Avandia for years. More...

Inland Valley Daily Bulletin,"Three Kids Injured in Yamaha Rhino ATV Accident"

         A crash involving youths on a Yamaha Rhino off-road vehicle resulted in three injuries, police said. More...

Sacramento Bee, "Plaintiffs say Ford deceived auto buyers about Explorer safety"

          In a case that puts more than $2 billion in Ford Motor Co. profits at stake, plaintiffs' lawyers told a Sacramento judge Tuesday that the automaker deceived consumers by marketing its rollover-prone 1990s-era Explorers as safe replacements for family station wagons. Ford's lawyers countered that the Explorer was the safest vehicle in its class, with positive ratings from safety agencies and consumer magazines. More...

Orange Bulletin.com, "Buttery flavor might be harmful to your health"

          Bronchiolitis obliterans, a severe form of lung disease, causes shortness of breath, coughing and lung destruction. Although the disease is very rare, it has been affecting certain workers at an alarming rate. Workers exposed to the chemical, diacetyl, which imparts butter flavoring to foods and beverages, have been developing bronchiolitis obliterans far above that which would be expected. Concerns began centering on diacetyl after a cluster of bronchilotits obliterans was discovered among workers at a popcorn factory in the Midwest. More...

The Times (Shreveport), "Lake Charles Teen Dies in Yamaha Rhino ATV Accident"

         A 13-year-old Lake Charles girl died Sunday night in a Shreveport hospital following an ATV accident in south Sabine Parish, Deputy Coroner Ron Rivers said. More...

Dallas Morning News, "Conagra Plant photos stir salmonella outbreak debate"

          Three months after a nationwide salmonella outbreak was tied to tainted peanut butter, nearly 2,000 people from North Texas say they were sickened and have hired attorneys to represent them, according to a Texas lawyer who runs a legal-solicitation Web site. As concern about food safety circulates in the news, Congress and the courts and attorneys are trying to swing the public debate. They argue that the food poisoning cases are not isolated incidents but a result of pervasively unsanitary conditions at food-production plants. More...

People's Daily Online, "China's drug watchdog warns consumers against recalled AMO contact lens solution"

          China's State Food and Drug Administration (SFDA) has urged Chinese consumers to stop using a contact lens solution produced by United States-based Advanced Medical Optics Inc. (AMO), which has been linked to a rare eye infection. More...

The Money Times, "AMO’s defective Contact lens solution may even cause blindness"

          An investigation conducted by health experts from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) revealed the presence of harmful bacteria in the Advanced Medical Optics’ (AMO) contact lens solution that can lead to eye infections and even blindness. California based AMO’s Complete Moisture Plus Multi-Purpose contact lens solution, designed to clean and store soft contact lenses like any other solution, is apparently causing a rare painful eye infection called Acanthamoeba keratitis that can even lead to grave consequences like permanent vision loss or blindness, according to experts. More...

Associated Press, "AMO Contact lens solution linked to rare eye infection"

          Government officials are warning people to throw away a contact lens solution after an investigation linked it to a rare eye infection. The warning concerns AMO Complete Moisture Plus Multi-Purpose Solution, used for cleaning and storing soft contact lenses, said a spokeswoman for the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The solution seems to be a factor cases of Acanthamoeba keratitis, a painful eye infection that can lead to permanent vision loss or blindness. More...

MSNBC.com, "Blind spots are a deadly flaw for most SUVs"

          How many kids can sit behind an SUV without being seen by the driver in the rearview mirrors? This is not a trick question. In fact, knowing the answer could save a child’s life. According to the consumer group Kids and Cars, as many as 62 children could be in that blind zone and you’d never know it. And that’s a huge problem. More...

Reuters, "Group says FDA knew of Avandia risk years ago"

          U.S. health authorities were aware of heart risks linked to GlaxoSmithKline Plc's widely prescribed diabetes drug Avandia and another competitor nearly five years ago, consumer advocacy group Public Citizen said on Tuesday. In 2002, U.S. Food and Drug Administration staff scientists called for reports of congestive heart failure to be included on the label of Avandia as well as Actos, made by Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., the group said, citing an internal FDA document. The group released the memo one day after researchers reported Avandia, or rosiglitazone, raises the risk of cardiovascular-related death by 64 percent and the risk of heart attack by 43 percent. More...

Delaware Online, "Diabetes drug Avandia, FDA under fresh scrutiny"

          First the painkiller Vioxx; now the diabetes drug Avandia. Another big drug safety issue has consumer groups, doctors and congressmen calling for an overhaul of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. On Monday, a medical journal published an analysis suggesting that Avandia raised the risk of heart attacks and possibly deaths. More than 6 million people worldwide have taken the drug to control blood sugar since it came on the market eight years ago, and about 1 million Americans use it now. More...

Detroit News, "Ford loses verdict in seat belt suit"

San Francisco Chronicle, "Avandia Diabetes Drug Tied to Heart Risks"

          The widely prescribed diabetes drug Avandia is linked to a greater risk of heart attack and possibly death, says a new scientific analysis published online Monday. More than 6 million people worldwide have taken the drug sold by London-based GlaxoSmithKline PLC since it came on the market eight years ago. Pooled results of dozens of studies revealed a 43 percent higher risk of heart attack, according to the review published by the New England Journal of Medicine. Experts said the overall risk was small and cautioned people not to stop taking the drug on their own but to talk to their doctors. More...

Orlando Sentinel, "Victory Against Ford After Third Jury Trial in Seat Belt Defect Case; Jury awards Orange man $32.5M in '96 collision"

          A northwest Orange County man who suffered severe brain injuries in a 1996 car accident when a seat belt failed was awarded $32.5 million Thursday by a local jury. After a third trial in a long-disputed case, an Orange Circuit Court jury ruled that a restraint-system defect caused the head injury to Mark Force, now 38. It also ruled that Ford Motor Co. and Mazda Motor Corp. -- which designed the seat-belt system for part-owner Ford -- were negligent for failing to warn consumers about the seat-belt defect in the 1993 Ford Escort driven by Force. More...

The Kansas City Star , "Doctors Slow to Admit Mistakes"

Associated Press, "Company Recalls 129,000 Pounds of Beef Possibly Tainted with E. Coli"

          A meat company is recalling 129,000 pounds of beef products in 15 states because of possible E. coli contamination, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said. The meat products are made by Davis Creek Meats and Seafood and were made for Gordon Food Service stores, the USDA said Wednesday on its Web site. More...

WBZ-TV.com, "Could Your Car Have a Dangerous Defect"

         Our I-Team has uncovered a serious gap in the system designed to notify you about life-threatening defects in your vehicle. More...

The National Law Journal, "Suits Surge Against Makers of Anti-Psych Drug Seroquel"

          Plaintiffs filed more than 350 products liability cases last month in Delaware state court against AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals L.P. over the anti-psychotic drug Seroquel -- a surge exceeding the total number of cases filed there in the last two years. Plaintiffs lawyers contend that there is nothing behind the spike in filings. They point out that Delaware is Wilmington-based AstraZeneca's home state and that the cases would have been filed eventually anyway. More...

KUAM News, "Mitsubishi Montero Rollover Accident"

New York Times, "Popcorn Butter Flavoring-Factory Illnesses Raise Inquiries"

          The workers, by and large, have been young and healthy. None were smokers, and none had any history of lung disease. But after working at plants that produce food flavorings, they all had one thing in common: they could not breathe. Over the last several years, California health officials have been tracking a handful of workers in flavoring factories who have been incapacitated with a rare, life-threatening lung condition — bronchiolitis obliterans — for which there is no cure or treatment. More...

Learn more about butter flavoring lung injuries and "popcorn lung" lawsuits.

New York Times, "FDA Expands Suicide Warning on Antidepressant Drugs"

          The Food and Drug Administration ordered drug makers yesterday to add warnings to antidepressant medications, saying the drugs increase the risk of suicidal thinking or behavior in some young adults. The drug labels, which have included similar warnings for adolescents and children since 2005, will now apply to people younger than 25. More...

Charlotte Observer, "Roaches, rat found in Georgia peanut butter facility; ConAgra plant linked to salmonella lawsuits"

          A Rock Hill attorney found a dead rat, rat traps and roaches when he inspected a peanut butter manufacturing plant linked to salmonella lawsuits, according to court documents. Attorney Randall Hood of Rock Hill and 15 other attorneys were inspecting a ConAgra Foods plant in Sylvester, Ga., in April when they found the dead rat, bird feathers inside the plant, roaches on raw peanuts and other things "consistent with salmonella contamination," according to a court document. More...

Montgomery Advertiser, "Wal-Mart to pay $4 million in tire suit"

          Wal-Mart will pay a $4 million judgment to Carolyn Thorne in a lawsuit stemming from a tire failure three years go that caused a wreck and left the local woman paralyzed from her injuries. Thorne was paralyzed in a one-vehicle accident on April 24, 2004, when the tread on the left rear tire of her Ford Expedition separated, causing the SUV to flip into the median on I-85. More...

Los Angeles Times, "3 lawsuits over E. coli deaths settled"

Aviation Web, "Finger-Pointing Continues in Gol Airlines Brazil Crash"

          The operator of the Embraer Legacy 600 business jet involved in a midair with a Gol Airlines Boeing 737-800 over the Amazon jungle is blaming the accident on Brazilian air traffic controllers, according to the Associated Press. All 154 people aboard the 737 were killed when the jets collided over the Amazon jungle in late September; the seven aboard the Legacy owned and operated by New York-based ExcelAire survived. More...

Associated Press, "U.S. company blames faulty Brazilian air traffic control for fatal Gol Airlines crash"

          ExcelAire said faulty Brazilian air traffic control was to blame for a middair collision between one of the U.S. company's executive jets and a commercial airliner that killed 154 people in Brazil's deadliest air disaster. The Gol airlines Boeing 737 and an ExcelAire Legacy 600 jet clipped each other Sept. 29 over the Amazon jungle. The Gol airlines jet crashed, killing all aboard, and the Legacy jet landed safely. More...

Associated Press, "Alabama Jury returns $4 million verdict against Wal-Mart For Tire Shop Negligent Supervision | Tire Blowout | Explorer Rollover"

          A Montgomery woman who was paralyzed in a 2004 rollover crash that occurred when the tread on one of her SUV's tires separated has been awarded $4 million in a judgment against Wal-Mart, whose service center failed to spot the defective tire. Thorne was driving her Ford Expedition to a business seminar in La Grange, Ga. when the tire tread separated and caused her to lose control, Allen said. The SUV rolled over one time and the roof was crushed down to the steering wheel, he said. More...

FDA Report, "Warning of Possible Contamination - Recall of Shelhigh Heart Valves and Related Medical Devices"

          The U.S. Marshals have seized at FDA's request all implantable medical devices manufactured by Shelhigh, Inc., Union, NJ, because they were manufactured under conditions that may have contaminated the devices. Therefore, these devices may fail to properly function. FDA is providing the following information for patients and their families, so they will be better able to discuss the best course of action with their doctors. More....

Associated Press, "Chevrolet Blazer has highest driver death rate"

          General Motors Corp. vehicles had the highest and lowest driver death rates from 2002 through 2005, according to a study being released Thursday by the insurance industry. Two-door, two-wheel drive Chevrolet Blazers built from 2001 to 2004 had the highest rate of 232 driver deaths per million registered vehicles during the four-year span, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety found. More...

Forbes, "FDA Seizes New Jersey Company Shelhigh's Implantable Medical Devices"

          All implantable medical devices and products made by Shelhigh, Inc. of Union, N.J. were seized Tuesday by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration after the agency found major problems in the company's manufacturing processes that may compromise the safety and effectiveness of the items. Sterility was a particular area of concern, the FDA said. More...

Manufacturing.net, "FDA Seizes Medical Devices From Shelhigh NJ Manufacturer"

          FDA investigators and U.S. Marshals announced Wednesday that all implantable medical devices were seized from Shelhigh, Inc. in New Jersey due to significant deficiencies in the manufacturing processes. According to the FDA, those deficiencies can compromise safety and effectiveness of the products and their sterility. More...

SeattlePI.com, "Implantable Shelhigh medical devices seized after violations found"

          Shelhigh Inc., a closely held maker of implantable medical devices, began having all of its products seized after U.S. regulators found manufacturing violations that may have contaminated some products. More...

Reuters, "Nailgun injuries taking out weekend warriors"

          Take a nation of do-it-yourselfers, add a ready supply of cheap nailguns and what do you get? About 37,000 nailgun injuries a year, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Since 1991, nailgun injuries have risen about 200 percent, the CDC said in its weekly report on death and disease. More...

Associated Press, "Ford recalls SUVs for brake trouble"

500,000 Escapes from 2001-2004 linked to potential engine fire danger

          Ford Motor Co. said Tuesday it was recalling more than 500,000 Ford Escape sport utility vehicles after receiving reports of engine fires linked to corrosion on antilock brake connectors. Ford said the recall involved 444,880 Escapes from the 2001-2004 model years in the United States, and about 75,000 Escapes in Canada, Mexico and Europe. The recall does not affect hybrid versions of the SUV, the automaker said. More...

Associated Press , "Moisture in peanut butter plant spread salmonella"

Dallas News, "Southwest, Boeing settle suit over death"

Jakarta Post, "Investigator chief denies his reported statement over plane crash"

          Chairman of the National Committee on Transportation Safety, or KNKT, Tatang Kurniadi Monday denied his reported statement on the recent plane fire that the accident was caused by differences between pilot and co-pilot. "There is no such a statement. They made up the story," Tatang was quoted by Antara news agency as saying. More...

News.com (Australia) "Garuda pilots 'argued before crash'"

          The pilots of a Garuda airliner that crashed in Indonesia, killing 21 people including 5 Australians, were arguing moments before the accident, a senior Indonesian investigator has said. Garuda Airlines Boeing 747-400 caught fire after overshooting the runway at Yogyakarta airport in Indonesia on March 7. More...