BIRMINGHAM - A jury found for Monsanto late today in a PCBs trial here, deciding there was not enough evidence to show the compound caused diabetes and other diseases in people exposed to it.
Lawyers paced the courtroom hallways and chatted nervously on cell phones all day long, until the jury returned at 5:04 p.m. and gave its decision.
Five plaintiffs sued the chemical company, claiming the polychlorinated biphenyls it produced and leaked into Anniston's environment for 40 years caused their diabetes and osteoarthritis.
Plaintiff James Abernathy was unhappy with the verdict.
"Anybody that couldn't see the evidence we put forth - they's blind," he said.
Fannie Wayne, another plaintiff, said the jury did what it had to do.
"Monsanto got out of this one with flying colors," said plaintiff Clarence Brown.
The plaintiffs sued Pharmacia, the company that after its merger with Monsanto in 2000 inherited liability for contamination at the plant. Lawyers for the company referred to their client as Monsanto, as did many of the witnesses throughout the trial.
Augusta Dowd, a lawyer for Monsanto, said in a written statement that she was pleased her team of lawyers proved that other risk factors like smoking, advanced age and obesity had caused the diseases, and not PCB exposure.
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Monsanto Gets Away with PCB Poisoning in Alabama
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Jury says evidence doesn't show PCBs caused disease
By Megan Nichols
The Anniston Star - AL, April 15, 2009
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