Jury Sides With Workers in Chemical Case

A Los Angeles jury awarded $2.5 million in damages to six people harmed by the use of a pesticide on banana farms by Dole Food Co. Inc. The jury hearing the case in Los Angeles Superior Court found that six other plaintiffs did not suffer any injury from exposure to DBCP on independent banana farms in Nicaragua 30 years ago. Westlake Village-based Dole plans to appeal the verdict awarding the $2.5 million in compensatory damages. Lawsuits filed by thousands of other workers from Costa Rica, Honduras, Guatemala and Panama alleging injury from use of DBCP remain pending in Los Angeles court, the Los Angeles Times reported.