Woman Awarded $1.8 Million In Lawn Mower Case Against Wal-Mart
A woman who suffered severe injuries after being run down by a defective lawn mower has settled a personal injury lawsuit against Wal-Mart for $1.8 million in compensation.
Joyce Burnside, 58, purchased a lawn mower from a South Carolina Wal-Mart store. According to the claim, she was riding the mower around her lawn when it began to turn over.
The suit claims that Burnside jumped off the machine, but the defective mower continued to chase her 30 feet across her lawn until she was blocked in by a tree. The lawn mower’s sharp blades were still running and sliced into Burnside causing her to sustain serious, permanent injuries to her arm.
The machine cut off most of Burnside’s left hand, leaving only her thumb and forefinger. Her left elbow was also severely crushed and she endured 18 unsuccessful surgeries in an effort to correct the disfigurement.
The personal injury lawsuit filed against Wal-Mart, the retailer of the lawn mower, sought monetary damages for Burnside’s economic and non-economic losses including pain and suffering, medical bills, disfigurement, and more. Murry, the Manufacturer of the product filed for bankruptcy.