Screen Shot 2011-11-23 at 3.09.11 PM.pngBefore her Listeriosis illness, the decedent, Florence Wilcox, was a 96-year-old resident of Hobbs, Lea County, New Mexico. Ms. Wilcox lived independently and remained very active. In fact, she was named 2011 “Patron of the Year” at the local public library. Ms. Wilcox frequently purchased and ate cantaloupes. On at least one occasion in the weeks before the onset of her Listeriosis illness, Ms. Wilcox purchased and consumed a cantaloupe that had been manufactured, distributed, and sold by Defendants Jensen Farms and Frontera. Onset of symptoms related to Ms. Wilcox’s Listeriosis illness occurred on or about September 8 with fever and chills, bloody stools, weakness, and general malaise. A neighbor drove Ms. Wilcox to Lea Regional Medical Center, where she remained for approximately 1 day. While at Lea Regional Medical Center, Ms. Wilcox gave a blood sample that would ultimately test positive for one of the strains of Listeria implicated in the cantaloupe Listeria outbreak, described previously. Ms. Wilcox’s condition continued to deteriorate while she was hospitalized at Lea Regional, and her physicians ultimately decided that she should be transferred, by helicopter life-flight service, to Covenant Medical Center in Lubbock, Texas. At Covenant Medical Center, Ms. Wilcox was first treated in the regular hospital, but soon was admitted into the intensive care unit. She developed extremely high fevers, her speech became fragmented, and she exhibited obvious pain and discomfort. Ms. Wilcox endured many diagnostic procedures throughout her hospitalization at Covenant Medical Center. Ultimately, the results of a spinal tap showed that she had developed meningitis. Ms. Wilcox died on September 15, 2011.  (Download Complaint PDF)