Janice Yancey and Jolene Mudgett vs. Plant Insulation Company

San Francisco Jury Awards Over $9 Million for Wrongful Death

On November 19, 2008, a San Francisco jury awarded a total of $9,057,775 to the widow, sons and daughter of two pipefitters who died of an asbestos cancer.  The jury rendered their verdict against Plant Insulation Company, formerly known as Plant Asbestos Company.

Jolene Mudgett, the daughter of Joseph Sandra, was awarded $1,250,000 for the death of her father, who succumbed to mesothelioma, a cancer of the lining of the lungs whose only established caused is that of inhaled exposure to asbestos fibers.  Mr. Sandra was 87 years old at the time of his death.  Mr. Sandra is survived by his daughter, Jolene Mudgett, his son, John Sandra, and his wife, Molly Sandra.

Plant Insulation Company was the Northern California exclusive supplier of asbestos-containing pipecover, block and asbestos cement products, made by Fiberboard Corporation, known as “Pabco.”  Plant Insulation Company was a major industrial insulating contractor that exposed Mr. Sandra at a number of bay area oil refineries from 1955 to 1975.  The jury found that Plant Insulation company was found liable for failing to warn Mr. Sandra about the unsafe insulation products he was exposed to.  Plant Insulation company was found to be 18% at fault, with other manufacturers, distributors and suppliers of asbestos products, who were not present at the trial, found to be 82% at fault in causing Mr. Sandra’s mesothelioma.  Co-worker and eye-witness James Szuch testified for the Plaintiffs.

Franklin Yancey died of mesothelioma at the age of 68 at the University of Texas, M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, in Houston, Texas.  He was survived by his wife of 25 years, Janice Yancey, and two adult sons, Jeff Yancey and Monte Yancey.  The jury awarded $7,807,775 in damages.  Mr. Yancey worked at San Francisco oil refineries in the bay area in the 1960s, and his two adult sons followed in the footsteps of their father.  Mr. Yancey’s co-worker and eye-witness, Vern Gosney, testified for the Yancey family.  Plant Insulation company was found to be ten percent at fault, with other manufacturers, distributors and suppliers of asbestos products, who were not present at the trial, found to be ninety percent at fault in causing Mr. Sandra’s mesothelioma.

Plaintiff’s expert witnesses included Charles Ay, a career insulator and pipefitter, Dr. Barry Horn, a pulmonologist from Berkeley, California; Dr. Richard Cohen, a physician who testified regarding the state-of-the-art, from Saratoga, California; Dr. Brian Dolan, a Southern California internist; John Templin, an industrial hygienist and materials analyst from Long Beach, California; Dr. Allan Smith, an epidemiologist from Berkeley, California, and Dr. Barry Ben-Zion, an economist from Santa Rosa, California.