A St. Tammany Parish citizen is suing a Florida-based corporation and a major Atlanta-based home improvement retailer following an alleged 2015 accident involving a product manufactured by the first defendant and purchased at the latter’s store.
Michael Smith sued Q.E.P. Inc. of Boca Raton, Florida, and Home Depot U.S.A. Inc., doing business in Louisiana, in the U.S. District Court of the Eastern District of Louisiana on June 15 alleging negligence in a bloody February 2015 accident involving a Q.E.P.-manufactured saw that the plaintiff bought at a Home Depot store in Slidell.
The plaintiff contends that when he picked up his Roberts Long Neck 6” Jam Saw 10-55 with his right hand on or about Feb. 15, the saw “turned on and kicked toward complainant severing one of the fingers on his left hand,” according to the suit.
In the suit, Smith suffered and continues to suffer “multiple personal, psychological and emotional injuries,” has undergone medical treatment, and is limited from his normal activities. He claims pain, suffering, anguish, medical expenses, lost wages and enjoyment of life, limited body functioning and disability.
Smith charges the defendants with failure to discover the product’s condition, design it safely and manufacture it properly with adequate materials. The plaintiff alleges failure of the manufacturer to warn consumers of defects, provide operating instructions and inspect and test the saw before distributing it.
The allegations further include Home Depot’s purported negligence in selling the product when it should have known of its unsafe condition, along with failure to warn buyers or install a safety mechanism to prevent the machine from turning on when picked up.
Requesting an amount of more than $75,000 plus interest, attorney’s fees, expenses and costs, Smith is represented by Michael Hingle, Donald D’Aunoy and Michael Hingle III of Michael Hingle & Associates in Slidell, Louisiana.
U.S. District Court of the Eastern District of Louisiana Case 2:15-cv-02215-CJB-MBN