Our law firm is representing people sickened after eating Blue Bell Creameries products that have now been recalled. You can click here now if you want to file a lawsuit. Below are answers to some questions you may have.
Does a Lawsuit Need to Prove How the Ice Cream Got Contaminated?
No, we look for that evidence because it could be used to help build the case, but it is not essential. One reason for this is that your personal injury or wrongful death suit will most likely consist of three claims, one of them strict liability. With strict liability, all we need to prove is that the product was defective and that eating it caused harm. To prove the product was defective, we need to provide evidence that it was contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes.
That being said, it is important to us to find answers. Was the Listeria bacteria brought into the plant on dirty shoes, pallets or vehicle wheels? What processes were in place to prevent such contamination?
How is it Possible to Have an Outbreak Last from 2010 to 2015?
To date, the CDC has confirmed that, from 2010 to 2015, 10 people in 4 states have been sickened in the outbreak linked to Blue Bell products:
- 5 people from 2014 through 2015 who were at Via Christie Hospital in Wichita, Kansas at the time they ate the contaminated ice cream, specifically, a product called “Scoops”;
- 3 patients from 2011 through 2014 who were all hospitalized in Texas for unrelated problems before developing listeriosis;
- 1 person from from Arizona; and
- 1 person from Oklahoma.
The dates of illness for the people from Arizona and Oklahoma were 2010 and 2012.
To understand this outbreak, it is necessary to explain that Listeria monocytogenes bacteria have variant DNA patterns. By definition, an outbreak is caused by bacteria with identical DNA patterns, generally one DNA pattern per outbreak. Here there are 2 groups of similar patterns involved, one found at the Blue Bell Texas plant, and one at the company’s Oklahoma plant. The Kansas cluster of illnesses are linked to the Texas plant; the others, to the Oklahoma plant.
It is the Oklahoma plant that is associated with the cases of illness going back to 2010. This means Listeria bacteria that entered the plant in 2010 were never effectively eliminated. It could have been in grout or some crevice, and then surfacing occasionally to contaminate product.
Connecting all of the dots to find these 10 cases took time because the first cases were so spread apart. This bacteria is genetically fingerprinted in specialized labs run by the CDC, and the data is stored in a special database called “PulseNet.” Health officials look at this database to find genetic matches indicating an outbreak of illnesses. After Listeria was found at the Blue Bell plants, the CDC mined PulseNet for cases with matching DNA patterns. That is how the outbreak grew from 5 in Kansas to 10 in 4 states.
We are representing people who we believe were also sickened in this outbreak. And it is highly likely that there are numerous other cases linked to this company’s products, including ice cream, sherbet and frozen yogurt, which were sold in the following states:
Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and Wyoming.
Does Listeria Die in the Freezer?
No. It is very hardy and can survive in the freezer, and only heat will kill it. With some frozen products, there is “kill step” where it is heated to a high enough temperature to kill dangerous pathogens before it is churned and frozen. When this is the case, the contamination happens later in the process, perhaps in churning or packaging.
It only takes about 1,000 cells to make someone sick. This is a microscopic amount.
Who Should File a Lawsuit against Blue Bell?
You should contact our law firm about a personal injury or wrongful death lawsuit if the following applies:
- You or a family member has been diagnosed with a Listeria infection, referred to as listeriosis;
- The person sickened ate a Blue Bell product (a receipt of purchase is good to have but not essential);
- The bacteria that made the person sick matches the DNA fingerprint of the outbreak strain.
Listeria is a reportable illness, so if you or a family member are diagnosed, the doctor will send information on to the state or local health department. Then government labs will analyze the bacteria to discover its genetic fingerprint through pulsed field-gel electrophoresis (PFGE).
For those sickened several years ago, you most likely still have a case, even though a lot of time has gone by. Some states have a short statute of limitation on filing these kinds of lawsuits, but there may be a “discovery rule”, which means the statute doesn’t start to run until you discover the cause of your illness. Because the connection to Blue Bell was not made until recently, you have time to file a suit.
Many people ask us about a class action suit. We generally do not file them in cases like this because the injuries are so different. With class actions, the injuries have to be very similar. You can discuss this with one of our lawyers if you have any questions.