The CDC reports: Shigellosis is a nationally notifiable diarrheal illness caused by gram-negative bacteria. Shigella infection is spread through fecal-oral transmission and sexual contact. Although most infections are self-limited, antibiotics are indicated for severe illness or to reduce transmission in settings with high risk for spread. Since 2015, a growing proportion of cases has been caused by […]
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 […]
I-884, the Education Trust Fund Initiative, raises the sales tax from 6.5 to 7.5%. Sure, no one likes taxes, but there are times when we really need to invest in our kids’ future, and that time is now. The Trust Fund creates 10,000 high-quality preschool places, so poor kids get a good start. In kindergarten […]
Supporters of so-called tort ‘reform’ bills in Congress claim that too many lawsuits have led to excessive costs and delays. They also charge that juries can no longer be trusted to render fair verdicts. But the truth belies these assertions. Tort ‘reform’ — really ‘deform’ — would gut our system’s ability to force wrongdoers to […]
The Wall Street Journal article “McDonald’s Callousness Was Real Issue, Jurors Say, In Case of Burned Woman” sheds some much-needed light on the McDonald’s coffee case. When a law firm here found itself defending McDonald’s Corp. in a suit last year that claimed the company served dangerously hot coffee, it hired a law student to […]
The Center for Justice & Democracy has published a story called MYTHBUSTER! THE MCDONALD’S COFFEE CASE” AND OTHER FICTIONS to tell the true story of the often misunderstood and misrepresented case of the 79-year-old woman who sued McDonalds after she received third-degree burns over 16 percent of her body from spilled coffee. The “McDonald’s coffee” […]
In a Pittsburgh Post-Gazette story Tomato supplier for Sheetz ceases operations, blames bad publicity, Joe Fahy and Jerome Sherman reported today that Coronet Foods, tomato distributer for sandwiches sold at Sheetz convenience stores, was ceasing operations today at its plant in Wheeling, West Virginia, leaving 220 workers without jobs. The company blames its going out […]