Man Says Stuffed Walmart Bag Broke, Killed Wife

A Nebraska man is suing Walmart, claiming one of its plastic bags led to his wife's death. William Freis says his wife, Lynette, went shopping in 2010 and the Walmart cashier put her 2-pound bag of rice and two 42-ounce cans of La Choy in just one plastic bag—which broke as Lynette walked to the car, causing one of the cans to fall on her foot. It broke her toe and also left her with a deep gash, which got infected; that infection spread through her body despite antibiotics and even two surgical procedures, "ultimately result[ing] in her death" almost a year later, the suit says.

Freis is also suing the plastic-bag maker, the Journal Star reports. He says the bag was defective, and also blames Walmart for not training its employees to double bag (or at least not overfill bags). The lawsuit seeks $656,000 in medical expenses, an unspecified amount for pain and suffering and loss of consortium, plus reimbursement for funeral and burial expenses. (More Walmart stories.)