PHILADELPHIA – The attorney for a Newtown Square woman who was allegedly injured when a sewing needle that she claims was left in a pair of Stuart Weitzman boots became lodged in her leg said a lawsuit filed Jan. 27 against the shoe company was filed because “the company’s representative was not responding to our requests to settle the case.”
“The plaintiff is seeking payment of medical bills and compensation for lost time from work, pain and suffering and scarring to her leg from the (surgery required to remove the needle) and needle,” Michael F. McCartin of Murray L. Greenfield & Associates, the attorney for plaintiffs Sandra Turtle and James Turtle of Newtown Square, told the Pennsylvania Record.
This is the needle doctors removed from Sandra Turtle's leg.
| Photo provided by Michael F. McCartin
Specifically, according to the complaint, the Turtles are seeking medical costs and reimbursement of $2,880 in income lost as a result of Sandra Turtle’s being forced to miss nine days of work because of the injury to and subsequent surgery on her leg.
Through the lawsuit, the Turtles are also asking the court to award them more than $50,000 in damages, as well as payment of interest and reimbursement of their costs related to filing the lawsuit.
When she first put on the boots, McCartin said Sandra Turtle experienced some pain, but she was not aware that the needle had gone into her leg.
“It did not leave a big hole in her leg but slid right in,” McCartin said. “She felt a sharp pain but didn’t expect a needle as she thought the new boot was just a little difficult to pull on.”
However, McCartin said Turtle’s pain persisted, so she went to her family doctor. An x-ray revealed that the five-centimeter sewing needle was indeed lodged in her right leg, the suit alleges.
“She was thereafter referred to a plastic surgeon who performed an operation under anesthesia to remove it,” McCartin said.
In addition, the lawsuit alleges that Sandra Turtle’s right leg swelled as a result of the needle being lodged in it. She also claims that the surgery resulted in a sprained ankle, scarring and pain and that she suffered embarrassment, humiliation and anxiety because she was afraid to undergo anesthesia and have surgery.
The Turtles’ lawsuit was filed in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas. In addition to Stuart Weitzman Shoes, the lawsuit names Lord & Taylor of Philadelphia, the store where the plaintiff was allegedly injured by the needle, as a defendant.
According to the lawsuit, boot manufacturer Stuart Weitzman and Lord & Taylor are guilty of negligence.
Charges brought in the complaint include of negligence, violation of the Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law (UTPCPL) and the Second Restatement of Torts, failure to use due care, strict liability, false advertising, gross negligence, breach of warranty and loss of consortium. A total of 11 counts were brought against Stuart Weitzman and Lord & Taylor.
Stuart Weitzman did not respond to multiple requests for comment made by the Pennsylvania Record regarding the Turtles’ allegations or the company’s planned defense.