NEW
YORK, May 23, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The personal
injury law firm of Gair, Gair, Conason, Rubinowitz, Bloom,
Hershenhorn, Steigman & Mackauf just filed today a
significant wrongful death complaint on behalf of the estate of
Órla Ruth Baxendale. The complaint
was filed against Stew Leonard's Danbury, LLC, Stew Leonard's
Holdings, LLC, Stew Leonard Jr., and supermarket employees
David Pollard, Peter Tournas, Bret
Cherry, Mario Ortiz,
Chris Nemer, Annemarie Clarke aka Annemarie Clarke Gochee, Sergio Rocha, and Cookies United LLC in the
Superior Court, J.D. of Waterbury.
As alleged in the complaint, the tragic incident
involved the wrongful death of 25-year-old Órla Ruth Baxendale, who was killed after consuming a
"deadly cookie" that contained peanuts which were not declared on
the product label. Despite eleven Stew Leonard's employees having
been told by the cookie manufacturer six months before they sold
the cookies that the recipe changed and they now contained peanuts,
the supermarket chain ignored those warnings and packaged and sold
the cookies without properly changing the label and without warning
their customers that they contained peanuts. Like every consumer,
Órla Baxendale, who had a known severe peanut allergy, relied on
the product labeling to ensure her safety. The complaint
alleges that the defendant Stew Leonard's exhibited
gross negligence and reckless indifference by failing to properly
label the package of cookies, causing Ms. Baxendale's death. All
consumers and especially those in the food allergy community rely
on the integrity of supermarkets to properly disclose ingredients
so as to not poison or kill those who purchase their food
products.
Key points of the complaint include:
- Broken, Unreliable, and Deadly Labeling and Packaging
Practices: The systems in place at Stew Leonard's used to
maintain and update the proper labels were broken, unreliable,
inherently dangerous, undependable, untrustworthy, erratic, and
deplorable. Multiple recalls followed Órla's death for a wide range
of food products sold by Stew Leonard's including the Florentine
Cookies.
- Negligence and Reckless Indifference: The supermarket
defendants failed to update the cookie's packaging to reflect the
inclusion of peanuts despite being notified of the ingredient
change in July 2023 by Cookies United
LLC. This omission directly led to the fatal incident on
January 11, 2024.
- Failed Responsibility: The complaint details how Stew
Leonard's and its employees ignored multiple notifications about
the ingredient change. These notifications included updated labels
and nutrition facts panels indicating the presence of peanuts.
- Cover-up and False Statements: Following Ms.
Baxendale's death, Stew Leonard's attempted to shift the blame onto
Cookies United LLC through a press release, which was later proven
to be false. Cookies United LLC responded with their press
releases, clarifying that Stew Leonard's had been informed about
the ingredient changes.
- Regulatory Violations: The defendants are accused of
violating federal and state food safety laws, including the FDA
Model Food Code and other relevant standards, by failing to
properly label the Florentine Cookies.
- Impact on Family: Ms. Baxendale was a talented dancer
and a scholarship student at the Alvin Ailey School. Her death has
left her family, including her parents, Angela Josephine Baxendale and Simon Baxendale, and her siblings,
devastated.
The lawsuit demands monetary damages, punitive damages,
attorneys' fees, and other relief deemed appropriate by the
court.
Read the complaint
Contact Howard
Hershenhorn: Hsh@GairGair.com and 516-695-9009 for
any questions.
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SOURCE Gair, Gair, Conason, Rubinowitz, Bloom, Hershenhorn,
Steigman & Mackauf