Tennessee family sues Cargill over E. coli illnesses
Marler Clark filed a lawsuit today in United States District Court for the District of Minnesota on behalf of Knoxville, Tennessee, residents Jim and Georgia McDonald and their two children, who both became ill with E. coli O157:H7 infections and were hospitalized after eating hamburgers made from Cargill ground beef patties in September.
According to the complaint, the McDonald family purchased Cargill ground beef patties on September 17th and cooked and ate the hamburgers on September 29th. Four-year-old John McDonald was seen in the emergency room on October 3, where he was treated for dehydration and released. The next day, he was taken by ambulance to East Tennessee Children’s Hospital, and was admitted. While hospitalized, John developed hemolytic uremic syndrome, pancreatitis, compromised liver function, and bowel necrosis. He was later transferred to the University of Tennessee Medical Center for dialysis, and on October 16th underwent surgery to have part of his bowel removed. After nearly a month’s hospitalization, John was discharged from the hospital on October 29, but has not yet fully recovered from his E. coli infection and the following complications.
One-year-old Michaela McDonald fell ill with symptoms of E. coli infection about a day after John, and was treated for dehydration at the emergency room on October 5th. By October 7, Michaela’s symptoms had not improved, and she was admitted to East Tennessee Children’s Hospital. When her brother was transferred to the University of Tennessee Medical Center, Michaela was also transferred. She remained hospitalized for over a week.
For further information about the lawsuit, please contact Suzanne Schreck at (206) 346-1879 or sschreck@marlerclark.com.
