First Lawsuit Filed by Marler Clark in Romaine Lettuce E. coli Outbreak

On December 11,2020, a lawsuit was filed by Wandro and Associates, P.C., and Marler Clark, L.L.P., P.S., against Aldi Inc., in the United States District Court Southern District of Iowa, on behalf of Cindy Day, a woman who became violently ill with E.coli after eating romaine lettuce days earlier. Cindy Day v. ALDI INC., Complaint #4:19-cv-00399-RP-CFB.

Ms. Day, who resides in Johnston, Polk County, Iowa purchased and consumed romaine lettuce from

According to the CDC, since the previous update on November 26, an additional 35 ill people have been reported. As of December 2, 2019, a total of 102 people infected with the outbreak strain of E. coli O157:H7 have been reported from 23 states: Arizona (3), California (4), Colorado (6), Florida (1), Idaho (3), Illinois (1), Iowa (1), Maryland (4), Michigan (1), Minnesota (3), Montana (1), Nebraska (1), New Jersey (7),North Carolina (1), New Mexico (2), Ohio (12), Oregon (1), Pennsylvania (8), Texas (4), South Dakota (1), Virginia (4), Washington (2) and Wisconsin (31).

Illnesses started on dates ranging from September 24, 2019, to November 14, 2019. Ill people range in age from less than 1 to 89 years, with a median age of 25. Sixty-five percent of ill people are female. Of 98 ill people with information available, 58 hospitalizations have been reported, including six people who developed hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), a type of kidney failure. No deaths have been reported. One case has been reported in Canada.

Epidemiologic, laboratory, and traceback evidence indicate that romaine lettuce from the Salinas, California, growing region is the likely source of this outbreak. This includes Santa Cruz, Santa Clara, San Benito, and Monterey counties in California.

FDA and states continue to trace the source of the romaine lettuce eaten by ill people. Preliminary information indicates that some of the ill people ate lettuce grown in Salinas, California. No common grower, supplier, distributor, or brand of romaine lettuce has been identified.

CDC continues to advise that consumers not eat, and retailers not sell any romaine lettuce grown in Salinas, California. The investigation is ongoing to determine the source of contamination and if additional products are linked to illness.

Marler Clark, The Food Safety Law Firm, is the nation’s leading law firm representing victims of E. coli outbreaks and hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS). The E. coli lawyers of Marler Clark have represented thousands of victims of E. coli and other foodborne illness infections and have recovered over $700 million for clients in the last 25 years. Marler Clark is the only law firm in the nation with a practice focused exclusively on foodborne illness litigation. Our E. coli lawyers have litigated E. coli and HUS cases stemming from outbreaks traced to ground beef, raw milk, lettuce, spinach, sprouts, and other food products. The law firm has brought E. coli lawsuits against such companies as Jack in the Box, Dole, ConAgra, Cargill, and Jimmy John’s. We have proudly represented such victims as Brianne Kiner, Stephanie Smith and Linda Rivera.

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