The mother of a Louisiana woman blames for her daughter’s death on Kratom, and she’s suing the companies she says are responsible.
Kathleen Moller filed her lawsuit in federal court against a host of companies. The defendant companies are Martian Sales Inc., Jopen LLC, Johnson Foods LLC, LP Ind. LLC, CAG Holdings LLC, RMH Holdings LLC, Olistica Life Sciences Group and other companies and individuals to possibly be named later.
According to the complaint, Harmony Miller died February 6, 2023. Her mother says the 36-year-old died as a result of the ingestion of Martian Sales’ OPMS brand Kratom that she purchased in Mandeville. The cause of death was “abnormally high left coronary ostia takeoff exacerbated by Mitragynine use,” according the complaint.
Kratom is the name given to botanical products derived from the leaves of the Mitragyna Speciosa tree that grows in Southeast Asia. The complaint says the extent of Kratom’s impact on humans is largely unknown, but it says powdered Kratom sold in the United States is “far more dangerous than other natural products that are sold over the counter.”
The complaint says Kratom contains dozens of psychoactive compounds and alkaloids, many of which are not understood. It says two of them – mitragynine and 7-hydromitragynine – bind to the same opioid brain receptors as morphine and can lead to analgesia, euphoria and sedation.
It says Kratom can cause nervousness, agitation, aggression, sleeplessness, hallucinations, delusions, tremors, loss of libido, constipation, skin hyperpigmentation, nausea, vomiting, addiction, severe withdrawal, heart arrhythmias, respiratory depression, seizures, drug interactions, overdose and death.
“According to recent research, Kratom is 63 times more deadly than other natural products that are sold to American consumers,” the complaint states. “Thus, it is not scientifically possible for Kratom sellers to verify that their products are safe for human consumption when sold over the counter like coffee, tea or other natural products.”
The complaint also says the Kratom industry instead has been built upon “clandestine and fraudulent business activities,” such as importing it as plant food, incense, cosmetic powders and other items. Government entities have tried to halt the use of Kratom through seizures, court action and passing laws against it. But, it says Kratom is smuggled into the country and sold through shell companies and with misleading labels.
The plaintiff says Kratom is “unreasonably dangerous” as defined by Louisiana’s Products Liability Act because it fails to warn users of the risk of sudden death and/or its opioid-like effects.
She says the defendants are liable for her daughter’s conscious pain, suffering, fear and grief in anticipation of death. She also says they are responsible for her and her late husband’s grief and her loss of companionship, consortium, love, affection and support. Harmony Moller’s father and Kathleen’s husband Ivan died shortly after his daughter.
Kathleen Moller seeks compensatory damages, judicial interest, court costs, attorney fees and other relief.
She is being represented by Nelson W. Wagar III and Sarah Wagar Hickman of Wagar Hickman in Mandeville and by Michael J. Cowgill and Tamara J. Williams of Mctlaw in Sarasota, Florida.