Case illustrates how manufacturers and retailers of ‘Whip-It!’ nitrous oxide are complicit in inhalant abuse
ST. LOUIS, Mo. — Following a two-week trial, the personal injury law firm Niemeyer, Grebel, and Kruse, in partnership with Johnny Simon of the Simon Law Firm, secured a $745 million verdict for the family of Marissa Politte, a 25-year-old who tragically lost her life in a 2020 incident involving a driver impaired by inhalant abuse.
The legal team held United Brands Corporation, the manufacturer of Whip-It! nitrous oxide, and Coughing Cardinal LLC, a retailer selling the product, accountable for their role in the tragic incident that transpired in October 2020. Leveraging a solid case that demonstrated the companies’ knowledge of the product’s dangerous potential when misused, they were able to illustrate the gravity of corporate responsibility to the jury.
The jury found $20 million in compensatory damages, with 70% of the responsibility to United Brands Corporation, 20% to Coughing Cardinal LLC, and 10% to the driver, Trenton Geiger, who had pleaded guilty to causing the death of Marissa Politte. In addition to the compensatory damages, the jury found $700 million in punitive damages against Whip-It’s distributor United Brands and $25 million against retailer Coughing Cardinal.
“The family of Marissa Politte and our firm are glad that for the first time a jury heard how the nitrous oxide industry has for years poisoned and harmed the U.S. public and this jury spoke loud and clear that this behavior should not be tolerated and must be punished. We hope this verdict serves as a wake-up call to the industry to stop selling this poison in places where it is purchased by the young and vulnerable as an inhalant drug” stated David Grebel of NGK Law.
This significant verdict stands as a testament to the fierce advocacy of Niemeyer, Grebel, Kruse, and Johnny Simon in holding corporations accountable for the safe distribution and manufacture of their products.