Asbestos Victim Wins $12.1 M

LOS ANGELES – A U.S. Navy serviceman who was exposed to asbestos during his job in the 1960s has been awarded $12.1 million by an LA County jury.

Charles H. Cundiff, 66, is a retired truck driver. Presently he is suffering from malignant pleural mesothelioma, a terminal cancer. The only known reason for the development of this disease is asbestos exposure. Cundiff was exposed to the cancer-causing substance all through his time as a machinist’s mate aboard the USS Kitty Hawk from 1962 to 1966.

The jury decided that manufacturer John Crane, Inc. and supplier Lone Star Industries were responsible for defective products and failure to warn Cundiff regarding the hazards associated to their products which led to him developing mesothelioma. John Crane was assigned 5 percent liability when Lone Star was assigned 19 percent.

The ruling came on May 6 after five days of jury deliberation. Cundiff will receive $10 million for pain and suffering and $506,000 in fiscal damages for lost wages. Joyce Cundiff, wife of Charles, was awarded $1.5 million for loss of consortium.

«


»