Brianna Smith is a freelance writer and editor in Southwest Michigan. A graduate of Grand Valley State University, Brianna has a passion for politics, social issues, education, science, and more. When she’s not writing, she enjoys the simple life with her husband, daughter, and son.
A recall was issued late Saturday for nearly 100,000 pounds of bulk raw ground beef from a JBS USA Swift Beef facility in Utah over concerns of potential E. coli contamination. According to the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), the recalled product was distributed to retailers throughout “at least five states,” including Utah, Washington, Oregon, California, and Nevada.
A family of an 18-year-old woman who died earlier this year on May 17 recently filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Superior Asphalt Inc., IMS Engineers, the city of Jackson, and others. According to the suit, the woman who lost her life was Frances Fortner. The day of the fatal incident, Fortner, who was a senior at Jackson Academy, was driving to graduation practice when her “car hit an unsecured manhole cover and flipped,” according to witnesses.
Costco Wholesale Corp. is at the center of a lawsuit filed by an African American Severn couple for $4 million. According to the suit, a manager allegedly “racially discriminated against them when he called the police for a robbery that did not happen.”
A graduate of Yale University recently filed a lawsuit against the university, several school officials, and Yale New Haven Hospital after she was allegedly involuntarily held at the hospital when she “admitted herself for depression.” Additionally, the lawsuit claims that Yale “forced her to withdraw from the university.”
Christine Bingaman of Arkansas filed a class-action lawsuit against the “Arizona Biltmore Hotel and Resort, a Hilton Waldorf Astoria luxury property that is known for its charm” and is popular among tourists and locals alike. Why did she file the suit? Well, it turns out that despite the fact that the hotel “promises a world-class experience,” Bingaman claims she encountered bed bugs during her four-night visit to the property in May 2018.
If you have an Eddie Bauer infant carrier, listen up. Earlier this week, Gold Inc. issued a recall for Eddie Bauer fabric infant carriers over concerns that the buckles on the carriers may break, “posing a fall hazard to children.” According to the recall notice, the recalled carriers were sold nationwide at Target stores and online for $70 between December 2017 and August 2018.
Mexican chain restaurant Cha Cha Cha recently found itself at the center of a gender discrimination lawsuit. The suit itself was filed by Mayra Ramirez, a former Human Resources employee with the establishment and alleges she was not only “paid less than her male counterparts,” but she also “regularly endured fat-shaming and racist insults, endured physically unhealthy workplace conditions, and was later fired after taking medical leave.”
A lawsuit was recently filed in Cumberland County Superior Court against a Bridgeton police sergeant over allegations that he made “unwanted sexual contact with a female worker at a café” two years ago. According to the suit, which was filed by Vineland resident Alexandra Ficcadenti, Sgt. Luis A. Santiago “sexually and physically assaulted her.”
A class-action lawsuit was recently filed on behalf of two former Avon employees over allegations that the popular beauty company “practiced systematic discrimination against women based on pregnancy, maternity, and the rights of nursing mothers to pump breast milk at work.” The suit itself was filed by Wigdor LLP, a New York law firm in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York and takes specific aim at Avon’s branding, including its claim that it’s a “company for women.”
More than 500,000 water heaters were recently recalled after officials determined that “their gas burner screens can develop tears, posing a fire hazard.” According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, the recall includes about “616,000 A. O. Smith Ultra-Low NOx water heaters.” The faulty water heaters were manufactured between April 8, 2011, and August 1, 2016.