Pritzker | Ruohonen Files First Lawsuit Arising from Minnesota E. Coli Outbreak Associated with Dole

Pritzker | Ruohonen Files First Minnesota E. Coli Outbreak Lawsuit

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT INFORMATION:
Fred Pritzker
Pritzker| Ruohonen & Associates, P.A.
612-338-0202
info@pritzkerlaw.com

(Minneapolis - October 14, 2005) -- A Minneapolis law firm with a nationally-recognized practice in foodborne illness litigation has filed the first lawsuit arising from the recent E.coli outbreak associated with Dole pre-packaged salads. The lawsuit, filed in Hennepin County, Minnesota, was brought on behalf of a suburban Minneapolis woman and alleges personal injury due to an outbreak of E. coli 0157:H7. The suit includes eleven counts against Dole Fresh Vegetables and its parent company, Dole Food Company, the producer of pre-packaged salad products linked to the outbreak.

On October 2, 2005 the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a nation-wide warning about the following salad products which have since been recalled by Dole:

Classic Romaine - with a "best-if-used-by (BIUB)" date of September 23, 2005 and a production code beginning with "B250."
American Blend - with a "best-if-used-by (BIUB)" date of September 23, 2005 and a production code beginning with "B250."
Greener Selection - with a "best-if-used-by (BIUB)" date of September 22, 2005, and a production code beginning with "B250."

In late September 2005 Minnesota Health Department officials began investigating cases of E. coli O157:H7 disease in Minnesota residents who ate prepackaged Dole lettuce purchased from at least four different Rainbow Foods stores in the Twin Cities area. Epidemiological investigation by the MDH and other health officials determined that an outbreak of E. coli 0175:H7 had occurred in Minnesota and was associated with Dole brand prepackaged salads sold at Rainbow Foods grocery stores in the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area.

47 year-old Virginia Tierney of Brooklyn Park, MN purchased one of the recalled products from a local Rainbow store on September 21, 2005. On September 24, 2005, Tierney developed symptoms of E. coli O157:H7 infection and after passing blood in her stool was admitted to Mercy Hospital in Fridley, Minnesota where she remained for three days. Although improved, Tierney continues to have symptoms caused by her E. coli O157:H7 infection.

According to the Minnesota Department of Health, there have been 23 confirmed cases of E.coli infection associated with consuming prepackaged Dole salads purchased at Rainbow Foods stores in Minnesota. Of these, 12 victims have been hospitalized. The Minnesota Department of Health is investigating 7 other E.coli cases, all family members of the 23 individuals who have been confirmed as being part of this Minnesota E.coli outbreak.

Tierney is represented by lawyer Fred Pritzker, President of the Minneapolis law firm of Pritzker | Ruohonen & Associates, P.A. The firm represents foodborne illness victims in Minnesota and throughout the United States and is one of the few that specializes in such cases. Pritzker | Ruohonen successfully represented several Minnesota E. coli victims in the 2000 outbreak involving hamburger purchased at Cub Food Stores and is lead counsel for victims of the 2002 Northeast United States Listeriosis outbreak that killed 12 people and injured more than 50 others. The firm has collected millions of dollars on behalf of victims of foodborne illness and defective products.

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