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A Jackson County jury decided that a company and its herbicide product are not liable for causing a man’s cancer.
Allan Shelton was one of about 90 plaintiffs who failed at an attempt to certify for a class action lawsuit in 2019. According to the initial petition, Shelton claimed that using Roundup, Monsanto Company’s weed killer product, for 26 years had caused his non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
Attorneys from either side did not respond to calls requesting comment. According to the judgment affirming the verdict, Shelton claimed at trial beginning on May 2, 2022 that Monsanto owed him for compensatory and punitive damages, alleging that Roundup is defective and the company was negligent for selling Roundup as a defective product.
A statement from Bayer, which bought Monsanto in 2019, said this is one of three similar verdicts that have been decided in Monsanto’s favor.
“These conclusions are consistent with the assessments of expert regulators worldwide as well as the overwhelming evidence from four decades of scientific studies concluding that Roundup™ can be used safely and is not carcinogenic,” the June 9 statement read.
A 9-person jury ruled in favor of Monsanto on all claims after deliberating for almost a day and a half, according to the judgment affirming the verdict.
“While we have great sympathy for Mr. Shelton, the jury has weighed the evidence from both sides in this case and concluded that Roundup™ is not responsible for his injuries,” Bayer said in its statement.
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$0 defense verdict
Personal injury
Venue: Jackson County Circuit Court
Case Number/Date: 1816-CV17026/June 9, 2022
Judge: Charles H. McKenzie
Plaintiffs’ Experts: Dr. Kenneth Spaeth, causation; Linda K. Schwieger, life care planning; Dr. Christopher Portier; Stephen E. Petty; William R. Sawyer; Dr. Charles Benbrook
Injuries: non-Hodgkins lymphoma
Caption: Allan Shelton v. Monsanto Company
Plaintiffs’ Attorneys: T. Roe Frazer, Patrick McMurtray and Trey Frazer of Frazer Law, Nashville; Wylie Blair of OnderLaw, St. Louis; David Wool of Wool Trial Law in Colorado; T.J. Preuss and Shawn Foster of Preuss Foster Law in Leawood, Kansas.
Defendants’ Attorneys: Hildy Sastre of Shook, Hardy & Bacon, Miami, Florida; Robert Adams, Jason Zager and Mathew Larsen of Shook, Hardy & Bacon, Kansas City.
