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Alleged Boat Collision Leaves Man Injured, Leads to Lawsuit

April 5, 2016 | by Broussard, David & Moroux

Anthony Buffinet was aboard the Cry Baby, the fishing vessel Cry Baby, when it was struck by another vessel, according to the suit filed by Buffinet on March 29 in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana.

Purportedly, on March 25, 2013, the Cry Baby, owned and operated by Buffinet, was moored at dock in Leeville when it was struck by the DMO Resolve, owned and operated by Dale Martin Offshore LLC. Buffinet’s suit names Dale Martin Offshore LLC as the defendant, asserting that the fault of the matter is their’s as they failed to maintain proper course and speed, failed to take preventative measures in averting the collision, and negligently operated their vessel.

In addition to damaging the Cry Baby, Buffinet himself was allegedly injured to such a degree that he has been unable to perform his usual duties and has been rendered disabled. Additionally, he has suffered financial loss and mental pain.

Prank Played On Offshore Worker Allegedly Results in Cancer, Suit

March 30, 2016 | by Broussard, David & Moroux

Sometimes, it is the smallest things that leave the largest impact. On or about March 14, 2014, Brent Little was an employee of Halliburton Energy Services Inc. and serving on the Liftboat Vanessa in the Gulf of Mexico. It was at this time that a prank was allegedly played on Little. John Barrow, a fellow crewman, allegedly slipped red tracer dye into Little’s boot. According to reports, Little wore the tampered boot for 14 hours that day and, upon removing the boots, heard laughter and noticed pink footprints on the floor. The die stained Little’s foot for three weeks and it was at this time that Little was informed that red tracer dye was a carcinogen.

Flash forward more than a year to May 16, 2015, when Little was involved in an automobile accident, the fallout of which required him to take a CT scan. According to Little, the scan revealed he had thyroid cancer, forcing him to undergo a thyroidectomy and the removal of lymph nodes.

Little filed suit on March 14 of this year in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana against Halliburton and John Barrow, citing negligence. After the initial incident, Halliburton launched an investigation and found John Barrow responsible for the prank. One such reason for Little suing Halliburton in addition to Barrow is likely that the jar of red tracer dye in question was under the care and custody of Halliburton, yet it was stored in the crew’s living quarters and had no label or warning signs that identified it as hazardous.

Woman Files Suit Over Alleged Cancer-Causing Products

March 29, 2016 | by Broussard, David & Moroux

Several corporations and other defendants have been taken to court by a New Orleans woman who claims to have developed ovarian cancer after using defendants’ products.

Paula Jackson filed suit in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana New Orleans Division on March 16, naming Johnson & Johnson, Johnson & Johnson Consumer Companies Inc., Luzenac America Inc., Rio Tinto Minerals Inc., John Does/Jane Does 1-30, and other businesses and/or corporations, whose identities and involvement are as of yet unknown, as defendants. The Doe defendants are representatives of the corporations whose conduct allegedly caused or contributed to the damages of the plaintiff.

The issues of this case primarily revolve around products containing talc, which defendants Johnson manufactured and defendants Luzenac and Rio have continually marketed as safe for human use. From about 1974 to 2015, Jackson applied defendants’ products to her groin for feminine hygiene purposes, which is a foreseeable use of such products based on their advertising according to the suit. On September 27, 2015, Jackson was diagnosed with ovarian cancer at the age of 62. Prior to this diagnosis, she allegedly did not have any of the risk factors normally associated with such a disease.

Man Suffers Amputation Due to Allegedly Defective Device, Files Suit

March 15, 2016 | by Broussard, David & Moroux

A veteran of both the New Orleans Police Department and the Vietnam War is suing 3M Co. due to an alleged defect in its Bair Hugger Blanket Device that lead to the amputation of his leg.

Lee Edward Peyton filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana on March 4 against 3M Co. and Arizant Healthcare Inc., alleging breach of express warranty, design defect, and liability under the Louisiana Products Liability Act.

According to the suit, Peyton underwent total knee joint replacement surgery in his left knee at Omega Hospital in Jefferson Parish. During the surgery, a Bair Hugger blanket was used keep Peyton warm. The device utilizes a portable heater/blower connected by a flexible hose to a disposable blanket that is placed on or under a patient to keep them warm by blowing hot air through the tube and blanket onto the patient.

Pharmaceutical Company Sued Over Drug Causing Birth Defects

March 8, 2016 | by Broussard, David & Moroux

GlaxoSmithKline LLC, the makers of Zofran, have been sued in federal court by a couple claiming that taking Zofran during pregnancy caused birth defects in their son.

Sicily Lafleur and Justin Lee Thibodeaux, both individually and as parents and natural tutors of their son, Kaden L. Lafleur, a minor, filed suit against GlaxoSmithKline LLC on February 23 in the U.S. District Court for the the Western District of Louisiana, Lafayette Division. The claims cited are negligence, misrepresentation, fraud, and breach of implied and express warranty.

According to the suit, Lafleur was prescribed Zofran in the beginning of her first trimester to alleviate morning sickness by her health care provider in Lafayette. The product of that pregnancy, Kaden L. Lafleur, was born on November 7, 2012, with congenital heart defects. The plaintiffs allege that these defects are a direct and proximate result of Kaden’s prenatal exposure to Zofran. As a result of these defects, Kaden purportedly required surgery immediately after birth as well as extensive follow-up treatments.

Wrongful-Death Suit Filed In Relation to Parade Incident

February 17, 2016 | by Broussard, David & Moroux

An incident during last year’s Krewe of Excalibur Carnival parade in Metairie has resulted in civil repercussions. Don J. Dauzat, 52, was struck and killed by an allegedly drunk motorist who was purportedly pursued by a Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Deputy at the time. Now, Dazuat’s family has filed a wrongful-death suit in the 24th Judicial District Court in Gretna, naming the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office, Excalibur, King Arthur, PFJ Float Co., and others as defendants.

According to the suit, Dauzat had finished dropping off the float he was pulling for the Excalibur parade and was transporting a tractor to a staging area for the Knights of King Arthur parade. It was at this time, about 2:50 a.m., that he was struck by a 2002 Ford Explorer driven by Michael Burrle near Lapalco Boulevard and Paxton Street in Harvey. The impact caused the tractor to roll approximately 70 feet and flung Dauzat from it, resulting in severe injuries to his skull and brain. He was transported to a New Orleans hospital but died less than a day later from his injuries.

Burrle was booked on suspicion of DWI and was eventually charged with vehicular homicide to which he plead not guilty.

Submerged Chevron Boat Allegedly Causes Another To Sink, Injuries

January 26, 2016 | by Broussard, David & Moroux

A lawsuit has been brought against Chevron for a shrimp boat that sank last year, allegedly due to an underwater and unmarked vessel owned by the company.

Hosea Wilson and Shajaun Turner filed suit on January 19 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana against Chevron USA, Inc. They claimed negligence on the part Chevron which resulted in damage to personal property and personal injury.

According to the suit, on March 19, Wilson and Turner were piloting a 36-foot Newton shrimp boat in Garden Island Bay in Plaquemines Parish. It was at this time that their vessel collided with a submerged and unmarked vessel owned by Chevron. The collision caused heavy hull damage to Wilson’s boat, and injured both men, according to the complaint. Additionally, the hull damage was so severe that Wilson’s boat took on water and sank.

Boat Capsized Reportedly Due to Negligent Wake Leaves Two Injured

January 12, 2016 | by Broussard, David & Moroux

Two men’s routine fishing trip was literally and figuratively upheaved when another marine vessel’s high rate of speed resulted in the capsizing of their boat, allegedly leaving the two men with various injuries.

Benjamin Lee Hines, Sr., and Andreas Damone Vitto sued Southern States Offshore Inc. on January 7 in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana., alleging negligence and personal injury liability.

According to the suit, the two men were fishing out of a recreational vessel around Maxie’s Grocery Store near Intercostal City in Vermillion Parish on September 27, 2014. At a certain time that day, Southern States Offshore’s vessel, the Southern Belle, entered that waterway at an alleged high rate of speed. The suit states that the rate was much too fast for prevailing conditions that day, and caused an intense wake. It is this wake which allegedly capsized the boat Hines and Vitto were fishing out of, knocking both men into the water.

Icy Deck Reportedly Causes Slip-and-Fall, Leaves Man With Disabling Injuries

January 4, 2016 | by Broussard, David & Moroux

Clint A. Coffey filed a lawsuit on December 1 against Marquette Transportation, citing violations of the Jones Act and negligence in maintaining safe working conditions. The Jones Act is set of maritime laws enacted in 1920 governing seaman’s compensation when injured.

According to the suit, Coffey was serving as a senior deckhand aboard the Kelly Rae Erickson under the employ of Marquette Transportation at the time of the purported incident. On February 19, as Coffey attempted to traverse from one vessel to another, he slipped on the icy deck. Coffey allegedly suffered severe and permanent injuries to his left shoulder, back, and other areas, leaving him in a state of disability.

The suit seeks punitive and compensatory damages to be determined at trial, as well as medical expenses. The case will be heard in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana.

Woman Sues Aerospace Company Over Husband’s Death, Claims Negli-gence

December 22, 2015 | by Broussard, David & Moroux

A pilot’s wife has accused several companies of performing faulty maintenance on the helicopter her husband was flying when it suffered catastrophic engine failure, which led to his death.

Colleen Hicks, of Oklahoma, individually, on behalf of her minor children, and as representative of her husband, Brandon Seth Ricks, filed suit on December 10 against Cadorath Aerospace LaFayette LLC, H&H Turbine Services LLC and Rotorcraft Leasing Co. LLC, claiming negligence that resulted in Brandon Ricks’s death.

The complaint states that Brandon Ricks, age 40, was piloting a Model 206 L-1 helicopter from Griffin Memorial Airport in Mississippi to aid in a controlled burn initiated by the U.S. Forest Service on March 30. At a point during the flight, engine failed, resulting in a crash that killed both Ricks and the passenger. According to the suit, Cadorath and the other defendants performed negligent maintenance on the craft from 2009 to 2014 which caused the engine failure in question.