Drug Maker Is Accused of Fraud

February 26, 2009

The Justice Department charged the drug maker Forest Laboratories on Wednesday with defrauding the government of millions of dollars by illegally marketing the popular antidepressants Celexa and Lexapro for unapproved uses in children and teenagers.

 

In a civil complaint filed by the United States attorney’s office in Boston, federal prosecutors alleged that former top executives at Forest concealed for several years a clinical study that showed that the drugs were not effective in children and might even pose risks to them, including causing some to become suicidal.

 

From 2001 to 2004, Forest heavily promoted results from another clinical trial it had financed that showed that the drugs were effective, without disclosing the negative study to those researchers, its own medical advisers or its sales representatives, the complaint said.

 

Read Article: New York Times

 

Posted By: Phoenix DUI Attorney

Woman infected with herpes wins lawsuit

A Riverside County jury has awarded nearly $7 million to a 56-year-old woman who was unknowingly infected with herpes by a 77-year-old man.

 

The lawsuit alleged that Thomas Redmond knew he had genital herpes for more than 25 years but did not disclose it before his sexual relationship began with Patricia Behr and did not use a condom.

 

The lawsuit claimed that Behr suffered unnecessary stress and humiliation as a result of the defendant’s conduct, which it called “outrageous and beyond the bounds of decency.”

Redmond, a resident of Las Vegas, is the founder of Redmond Products Inc., a company that manufactures and distributes hair care products. The company was sold in 1997 to Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. and became part of Clairol, which was sold to Procter & Gamble Co. in 2001.

 

Read Article: San Francisco Chronicle

 

Posted By: Phoenix DUI Attorney

Something Rotten in Drywall, Say Homeowners

George and Brenda Brincku knew they only wanted to use the best products for the third house they built together. She said they learned the hard way by scrimping in the past.

When it came to drywall, they insisted their subcontractors use an American-made product.

 

But the couple started experiencing unusual problems along with a number of owners whose homes were built in 2005 and 2006 when construction materials were scarce. The coils in their high-end air conditioner failed repeatedly. There was a strong odor in a downstairs bathroom.

 

“We knew something was wrong,”said Brenda Brincku. They then read news accounts about houses with similar problems blamed on flawed toxic drywall manufactured in China by Knauff Plasterboard Tianjin and other Asian companies. But the Brinckus’ home near Fort Myers didn’t have Chinese drywall. Their drywall came from U.S. companies including National Gypsum in Charlotte, N.C.

 

Read Article: Law.com

 

Posted By: Phoenix DUI Attorney

Lawsuit filed by local woman who says tainted peanut butter made her sick

In a twist not quite worthy of a John Grisham legal thriller, a Beaumont attorney representing a woman who alleges she ate salmonella-tainted peanut butter in 2007 suspects he also was infected by the bug during the most recent outbreak.

 

Greg Degeyter, an attorney with the Beaumont law firm of Sutton & Jacobs LLP, representing Melba Hoffpauir in her lawsuit against the maker of Peter Pan Peanut Butter, said he can empathize with his client’s distress.

 

Degeyter said in January he developed symptoms consistent with a salmonella infection after eating a protein bar that was included on a list of products recently recalled.

“When you first get in to the hospital, doctors might think it’s appendicitis,” he said, adding that the infection causes abdominal tenderness. “You’re sick, but not quite sick enough for it to be appendicitis.”

 

Read Article: Beaumont Enterprise

 

Posted By: Phoenix DUI Attorney

Target, Greer woman face off over $3 million award

Target Corp. asked a judge Wednesday to overturn a jury’s decision to award a Greer woman $3.1 million after the jurors decided the superstore wrongly accused her of trying to pass a counterfeit bill two years ago.

 

Target’s lawyer, Knox Haynsworth, said in court that the jury was impassioned and overreached its authority when it awarded Rita Cantrell $3.1 million in damages.

Cantrell’s lawyer — former federal appellate Chief Judge Billy Wilkins — argued Target is a $15.6 billion company whose loss in damages equals a mere $5.30 when compared with Cantrell’s salary.

 

U.S. Magistrate Bruce Hendricks on Wednesday heard arguments from lawyers on Target’s request that the award be reduced or erased. The judge took the requests under advisement and ordered both sides to file detailed written arguments by March 18 before she makes a decision. Cantrell was in the courtroom and left without comment following the hearing.

Read Article: Greenville News

 

Posted By: Phoenix DUI Attorney

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