BELLEVILLE — A man is suing Abbott Laboratories for injuries his father suffered before his death.
Cedric C. Jones filed the lawsuit against Abbott Laboratories Inc. and Lincare Inc. on behalf of his father, Chester L. Jones Sr., who died in November, according to a complaint filed Nov. 26 in St. Clair County Circuit Court.
Cedric Jones claims ethat when his father had a stroke in 2015 he became disabled, requiring him to eat through a feeding tube.
Chester Jones would eat three to four containers per day of Vital AF, a liquid food product manufactured and sold by Abbott. The complaint says that while his daughter, Angela Jones, was feeding him on July 27, she noticed contaminants that looked like maggots in the bottom of the container.
Cedric Jones claims his father had been receiving the contaminated food from at least July 23 until July 27 and that he was taken to Memorial Hospital due to dehydration and diarrhea, where he remained until Aug. 2. He continued to suffer from dehydration and diarrhea even after he was released from the hospital up until his death on Nov. 9.
Angela Jones and Cedric Jones purchased the Vital AF in bulk from from Lincare in St. Louis in sealed containers, according to the suit, and the products purchased and used between July 23 and July 27 were contaminated with either maggots or a similar contaminant that was not fit for human consumption, the suit says.
Cedric Jones claims the Abbott breached the implied warranty when it provided products to Cedric Jones and his sister that were not fit for human consumption and caused Chester Jones dehydration, diarrhea, pain and suffering, emotional distress and medical expenses.
The plaintiff claims the Vital AF was defective and that Abbott Laboratories and Lincare are liable for Chester Jones' injuries for the contamination of Vital AF.
Cedric Jones is seeking compensatory damages. He is represented by David M. Duree of David M. Duree * Associates PC.
St. Clair County Circuit Court case number: 19-L-0831