A personal injury lawsuit filed in Athens County against a local manufacturing company moved to federal court last month.
The lawsuit, filed by an Athens resident, John Wright, against DuPont, a chemical manufacturing company, was moved to the federal court on Dec. 27.
DuPont owns and operates the Washington Works Plant, a manufacturing facility in Wood County, W. Va. A 2001 lawsuit filed against the plant accused DuPont of releasing C8, a toxic used in making Teflon, into the Ohio River, according to court documents.
Wright’s lawsuit, one of five filed against DuPont on the same day, claims the company used hazardous and toxic wastes and pollutants, including C8. The lawsuit claims that DuPont contaminated four Ohio water districts with C8.
A class action settlement involving DuPont from 2006 created a science panel charged with researching the links between C8 and diseases. In 2012, the panel found a link between C8 exposure and thyroid disease, which Wright has.
Wright said in court documents that he was exposed to the C8 at one of the four contaminated water districts for more than a year.
He is suing DuPont for negligence, deception, unfair business practices and other charges. He is asking for DuPont pay him $75,000 in compensatory and punitive damages as part of a jury demand, according to court documents.
DuPont issued a response to the complaint on Dec. 27, denying Wright’s claims. DuPont admitted the high exposure to C8 can cause some disease, but only in animals.
The company also claimed in court documents that any of Wright’s damages were “caused by acts of God” or others that DuPont did not control over. The company asked the court to dismiss the complaint.
The court has yet to issue a response.
ml147009@ohiou.edu
