Abell's Kentucky Law Blog

Peanut Butter Maker Knowingly Shipped Tainted Product

The Georgia peanut butter maker identified as the source of the salmonella outbreak that has killed eight people and sickened over 500 knowingly shipped salmonella-tainted peanut butter 12 times in 2007 and 2008, the Washington Post reports, "Peanut Processor Knowingly Sold Tainted Products." The Post reports:

Officials at the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which have been investigating the outbreak of salmonella illness, said yesterday that Peanut Corporation of America found salmonella in internal tests a dozen times in 2007 and 2008 but sold the products anyway, sometimes after getting a negative finding from a different laboratory.

The company was not required to disclose its tainted products to federal or state officials.

In addition to killing eight people and harming more than 500, the salmonella outbreak has caused recall of more than 100 products. To review the list click here.

Robert L. Abell
www.RobertAbellLaw.com

Tainted Toys To Remain For Sale, Consumer Product Safety Commission Says

Children's toys, including teethers and pacifiers, tainted by the presence of the controversial chemical phthalate will remain for sale for now and even after a ban takes effect on February 10, 2009, provided they were manufactured before that date, according to a decision by the Consumer Product Safety Commission, the Washington Post reports, "Some Toys With Banned Plastics Will Stay On Market." 

Phthalates are a chemical used in soft plastics and are linked to reproductive problems.  Their use was banned by a law passed in August.  However, the Commission's ruling will allow products made before that date which use the banned substance to be sold, even after February 10, 2009. 

The Commission proposes a remedy that is unworkable; it says that concerned parents can call a product's manufacturer and find out when the item was made.  This is a proposal untethered from reality.  One can first question the reliability of any information a parent would receive.  Do you call before the item is purchased?  Do you identify the item on the store shelf, call and return later hoping to find the same item on the shelf?  Ignoring these realities the Commission caved into industry's complaints about complying with this law protecting families and their children.

Robert L. Abell
www.RobertAbellLaw.com

Mislabeled Insulin Syringes Recalled

Mislabeled insulin syringes manufactured by Covidien. Ltd. and sold by Wal-Mart and Sam's Club stores have been recalled, according to a report in the New York Times, "Insulin Syringes Are Recalled."  The recall was announced by the Food and Drug Administration.  The mislabeling could cause patients to receive 2.5 times the normal dose; approximately 471,000 syringes, which go by the brand name ReliOn, are said to affected.

Robert L. Abell
www.RobertAbellLaw.com

"Get Out of Jail" Free Cards For Corporations -- American Association for Justice Details Undermining of Family and Consumer Protections

The American Association for Justice has released a report, Get Out of Jail Free: How the Bush Administration Helps Corporations Escape Accountability, detailing the systematic and widespread undermining of family and consumer protections by Bush Administration agencies and political appointees.  Through documents and emails obtained via the Freedom Of Information Act the AAJ report traces the evolution and development of a federal preemption strategy, a legal doctrine by which state law protections for families and consumers are eliminated or "preempted" by federal regulations that insulate corporations from liability, accountability and responsibility for their defective products.

Robert L. Abell
www.RobertAbellLaw.com

Drop Side Crib Recall

Following the death of one child and harrowing incidents involving others the Consumer Product Safety Commission announced today the recall of about 600,000 drop side cribs manufactured by Delta Enterprise Corp.  The drop side of the defective cribs can detach when its spring peg is not engaged.  Further and detailed information can be obtained at the CPSC website by clicking here.

Robert L. Abell
www.RobertAbellLaw.com

Increased Efforts To Prevent Injured Families From Holding Corporations Accountable

The Wall Street Journal reports that the Bush Administration, as it winds down amidst the meltdown of our national economy causing the loss of some $2 trillion of Americans' retirement savings and the faltering wars in both Afghanistan and Iraq, is moving aggressively to erect further bars preventing injured families from holding accountable the corporations responsible.  See "Bush Rule Changes Could Block Product-Safety Suits."  The latest instance of lawsuit-protection language for corporations that have harmed and injured American families is a rule announced Oct. 8 that establishes a limit on the number of seat belts car manufacturers can be required to install and prevents lawsuits by injured persons who were unable to be protected by a seat belt.  This is the latest installment of the Bush Administration's efforts to insulate corporations from responsibility, accountability and liability for their wrongful actions through the legal doctrine of "preemption."  The Bush Administration has wholly abandoned long-standing rules and practices to aid and protect American families in favor of rewarding the corporate interests that it serves.  Unlike the $750 billion bailout for the financial services industry that American families were recently touched upon to fund, the preemption bailout goes on by stealth and largely unnoticed.  Both achieve the same result: shifting to American families the burdens created by irresponsible and wrongful corporate actions.  

Robert L. Abell
www.RobertAbellLaw.com 

Nursing Home Safety & Health Violations Reported

94% of nursing homes were cited last year for violations of federal health and safety standards.  Unsurprisingly, for profit homes were cited for violations more frequently than not for profit or government-operated homes.  Nearly 20% of the violations involved "actual harm or jeopardy" to patients. Frequently cited problems included medication errors, failure to feed properly, infected bedsores and abuse and neglect of patients.  The New York Times reported on the review conducted by the federal Department of Health and Human Services, "Violations Reported at 94% of Nursing Homes."  The report can be viewed at the Department's website by clicking here.  

Robert L. Abell

www.RobertAbellLaw.com

 

Fatal ATV Crash In Jackson County

A McKee man, David Ray Gibbs, was killed late Saturday when his Honda ATV crashed off Kentucky Highway 3445 in Jackson County.  The Lexington Herald-Leader reports that the vehicle ran off the pavement and through a barbed wire fence.

Robert L. Abell
www.RobertAbellLaw.com

ATV Age Guidelines Unsafe

Age guidelines regarding safe operation of ATVs do not assure the safety of young riders.  Far more important concluded a study conducted at the University of Kentucky is the size of the rider.  142 Kentuckians died in ATV accidents between 2003 and 2006.  The Lexington Herald-Leader story can tell you more by clicking here.

Robert L. Abell
www.RobertAbellLaw.com

Family Member Of Asbestos Worker May Sue For Cancer Death Caused By Asbestos Exposure

The daughter of a worker who carried home from work asbestos fibers on his clothing developed mesothelioma, a rare form of cancer whose only known cause is exposure to asbestos.  She (and upon her death her estate) sued Alcoa, Inc., her father's employer, claiming that it had a duty to prevent the exposure to asbestos of family members of its workers.  After her suit was thrown out by a trial court, the Tennessee Supreme Court reinstated it and ruled it should proceed to trial.  Recognizing the great dangers posed by asbestos exposure, which have been well-known for decades now and the relative ease and inexpense of preventing that exposure to workers' families, the court stated, "In light of the magnitude of the potential harm from exposure to asbestos and the means available to prevent or reduce this harm, we see no reason to prevent carpool members, baby sitters, or the domestic help from pursuing negligence claims against an employer should they develop mesothelioma after being repeatedly and regularly in close contact with an employee's asbestos-contaminated work clothes over an extended period of time."  A copy of the opinion, Satterfield v. Breeding Insulation Company, can be read by clicking here.

Exposure to asbestos generally produces two types of illnesses: asbestosis and mesothelioma.  Exposure to asbestos is the only know cause of mesothelioma, which is a cancer that initially forms in the exterior lining of the lung.  Asbestosis is a condition resulting from the accretion of asbestos fibers in the lung interior that eventually and over time causes greatly decreased respiratory capacity and can develop into cancer itself. 

Robert L. Abell
www.RobertAbellLaw.com