Press release:
A Pensacola jury handed down the largest compensatory verdict to date against 3M after the jury found earplugs sold by 3M to the United States Military for use by service members were defectively designed.
A jury in Pensacola, FL has awarded U.S. Army Veteran, Luke Vilsmeyer, $50 million in compensatory damages for severe noise-induced tinnitus and mild-moderate hearing loss suffered during active duty while wearing the Combat Arms Earplug sold by 3M. Mr. Vilsmeyer is a retired Green Beret Master Sergeant with 21 years of service, and wore the now withdrawn earplug during active duty, including five combat tours. Pensacola attorneys Brad Bradford, Daniel Thornburgh and Jennifer Hoekstra, partners at Aylstock, Witkin, Kreis & Overholtz, co-tried the case with Joe Messa and Caleb Seely.
“It was an honor to represent a client like Luke Vilsmeyer. He proudly served our country for over 20 years and protected us in the war on terror. He did so without knowing the 3M Combat Arms earplugs he used were defective. He will live the rest of his life with hearing loss and tinnitus because 3M put money over soldiers’ safety. Luke Vilsmeyer deserved better. All our troops who used these defective earplugs deserved better. We’re grateful the jury saw through 3M’s efforts to distract them from the truth,” says attorney Brad Bradford.
Aylstock, Witkin, Kreis & Overholtz, PLLC represent over 40,000 active and retired military service members of the nearly 250,000 total cases filed in Pensacola, Florida in the multidistrict litigation in federal court presided over by local federal judge Honorable Margaret C. “Casey” Rodgers.
