Lawsuit Claims Walmart Liable for Dust Spray Huffing

Two women are claiming Walmart and others are liable for car accident injuries they suffered when another driver “huffed” Ultra Duster, a compressed-gas spray commonly used to clean electronic components.

In December 2017, Natalie Chairez says was driving with her adult daughter, Samantha, along a federal highway in Minnesota, when a man named Tyler Harmon lost control of his vehicle, crossed the median and struck their vehicle head-on. It was later determined Harmon had intentionally inhaled Ultra Duster to get high, so he was driving impaired.

According to a local media legal news report about the incident, Natalie Chairez suffered critical injuries and had to be airlifted to a nearby hospital. Her daughter was also hurt, though not as severely.

The Walmart dusting spray lawsuit notes Natalie’s injuries included a fractured neck, arm and femur. She was subjected to a lengthy hospital stay and required a bone graft and other surgical procedures. With her mobility seriously impaired for the long term, she now must rely on a wheelchair or walking aid to get around.

“As a result of these injuries, Natalie Chairez and Samantha Chairez have endured, and will continue to endure, pain, suffering, distress, and a substantial reduction in their capacity to enjoy life and to participate in their usual activities,” the complaint states.

The plaintiffs call Walmart and the other named defendants “active and knowing participants” in the design, manufacture, distribution, sales and purchasing of Ultra Duster. It is one of many compressed-gas dusting sprays generically known by terms such as “keyboard cleaner” and “canned air.”

These products are sold to the public as safe and efficient ways to clear dust and debris from sensitive surfaces such as computer screens, or hard-to-reach crevices like the spaces between the letters on a keyboard.

However, the Walmart dusting spray lawsuit notes that they contain a gas called difluoroethane, or DFE, which is a central nervous system depressant. When inhaled, it causes drowsiness, dizziness, loss of inhibitions, slurred speech and the inability to make sound decisions. It can also cause paralysis, unconsciousness, suffocation or cardiac arrest.

In addition, according to the American Addiction Centers, inhaling DFE causes immediate psychoactive side effects, such as euphoria, hallucinations and delusions. For this reason, dusting sprays are widely abused by people seeking those effects — often with catastrophic results, either for the user or for innocent bystanders.

And yet, the Walmart lawsuit states, these products are cheap and easily available, making them popular among inhalant abusers.

“The companies who design, manufacture, distribute, and sell these products profit greatly as a result,” the Walmart lawsuit says.

The Walmart dusting spray lawsuit cites numerous legal news articles going back decades, detailing injuries and deaths stemming from people abusing inhalants — many of them involving innocent bystanders.

It also states that Ultra Duster specifically has been involved in motor vehicle crashes in multiple states.

In a similar case filed against the same defendants in 2012, representatives of both Walmart and AW Distributing testified they were aware people had been abusing Ultra Duster since at least 2008.

“The manufacturers, distributors, and sellers of these dust removers are fully aware of these predictable and foreseeable injuries and deaths,” the current lawsuit alleges. “Every one of these injuries and deaths was preventable, yet [the defendants] have failed to deter or prevent people from inhaling their dusting sprays.”

The product has a warning on its label stating that “misuse by deliberately concentrating and inhaling contents may be harmful or fatal.” In addition, the defendants claim they introduced a bitter-tasting agent to the product to deter such abuse. However, the plaintiffs question whether a bittering agent was really added, as no testing has been done to support that statement.

In any case, neither the warning or the bittering agent has been an effective deterrent to using the product as an inhalant, according to the Walmart dusting spray lawsuit.

“Upon information and belief, Defendants had no intention of actually discouraging abuse of Ultra Duster as an inhalant as Defendants continued to sell Ultra Duster in a form that continued to be inhaled by persons seeking to get high,” the Walmart lawsuit states.

The plaintiffs argue that the product was sold in quantities far greater than what would be expected if used only for dusting, and that the defendants knew or should have known that.

“Defendants’ carelessness, negligence, recklessness, deception, and concealment is of a constant and continuing nature,” the complaint states. “Defendants’ actions and omissions will undoubtedly continue to cause long-lasting effects on members of the general public.”

The plaintiffs are claiming defective design, manufacturing defect, failure to warn, negligence, breach of express and implied warranty, unlawful and deceptive trade practices and public nuisance.

They are demanding a jury trial, seeking a minimum of $75,000 plus punitive damages, court costs and any additional relief the court deems just and equitable. They also are asking the court to prohibit sales of these DFE products to minors; prohibit the sale of more than one can to a customer per 30-day period; and require their packaging to be redesigned with “an effective physical mechanism or chemical composition to deter inhalant abuse.”

Have you been injured and suspect the party who caused the injury may have been huffing Ultra Duster? Let us know in the comments. 

The plaintiffs are represented by Tara D. Sutton, Philip Sieff, Gary L. Wilson and Jason L. DePauw of Robins Kaplan LLP.

The Walmart Dusting Spray Lawsuit is Natalie A. Chairez and Samantha G. Chairez v. AW Distributing Inc., Walmart Inc., Wal-Mart Stores Inc., Wal-Mart Stores East LP, Wal-Mart Stores East LLC, et al., Case No. 0:20-cv-01473, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota.

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