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Three military members who claim their hearing was damaged by using defective earplugs manufactured by the 3M Company have been awarded more than $2 million in punitive damages each, in the first trial of a multidistrict litigation involving as many as 240,000 claims.
A Florida federal jury granted a total $7.1 million verdict in favor of former members of the U.S. Army Friday after hearing Plaintiffs Stephen Hacker, Luke Estes and Lewis Keefer’s claims of suffering irreparable hearing loss after using the 3M earplugs during combat or combat training, Law360 reported.
The former military members said 3M and a predecessor, Aearo LLC, supplied earplugs specifically made for combat arms called CAEv2s. However, they said after using the headphones they have each developed serious issues like hearing loss and tinnitus.
As well as awarding the former army members $2.1 million each in punitive damages, the jury also awarded an additional $160,000 to Hacker for pain and suffering. In 2006, the 20-year Army veteran, started experiencing bilateral tinnitus.
To Estes, a former tank platoon leader at Fort Benning in Georgia who started losing hearing and developed ringing in both ears in 2014, the jury awarded an additional $350,500 for medical costs, lost earnings, and pain and suffering.
And to Lewis Keefer, an Army medic who started to lose his hearing after he used the earplugs at Fort Benning and in the line of duty in Iraq, another $320,000 was awarded in medical costs, lost earnings, and pain and suffering.
This trial, which started March 29, brought to a jury the first three claims of as many as 240,000 total to come in the multidistrict legislation, Law360 reported. Two more cases are set to be heard in the next two months of soldiers whose hearing was damaged both in training and during an IED blast in Afghanistan.
The 3M Company tried to have a mistrial declared three times on Friday, in one instance only 20 minutes after the court denied its previous request. Each motion was denied by Judge M. Casey Rodgers.
The company has argued that the military should take responsibility for the design of the earplugs that didn’t prevent hearing damage. 3M’s lawyers told Law360 Friday they see multiple grounds for appeal.
Meanwhile, this is one in a string of cases 3M has faced over the defective earplugs. In 2018, 3M agreed to pay $9.1 million to resolve claims that it defrauded the government by selling it combat arms earplugs despite the product’s alleged defects.
If you are a veteran with hearing loss or tinnitus, you may have been issued defective ear plugs during your military service that caused your hearing problems, making you eligible to seek compensation for your injuries. Click here for more information about becoming part of a lawsuit.
What do you think of the damages awarded to these three military members? Let us know in the comments!
The plaintiffs are represented by Christopher Seeger of Seeger Weiss LLP, Bryan Aylstock of Aylstock Witkin Kreis & Overholtz, and Shelley Hutson of Clark Love & Hutson.
The Military Hearing Damage 3M Multi District Litigation is 3M Combat Arms Earplug Products Liability Litigation, Case No. 3:19-md-02885, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida.
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