WalMart Scumbags busted selling dangerous bikes to kids

Triathlon Forum
1

This would be really funny if it wasn’t so sad. MARIN COUNTY
Broken quick-release lever puts brakes on trial over alleged bike defect
Jurors examine wheel mechanism – and it reportedly breaks off

Jim Doyle, Chronicle Staff Writer

Thursday, February 9, 2006 Printable Version Email This Article

A jury’s deliberations into whether Wal-Mart Stores Inc. sold defective bicycles took an unexpected twist Wednesday when its forewoman explained to a Marin County judge how a quick-release lever on a bicycle had broken off in the jury room.

The jurors had been invited by defense lawyers for Wal-Mart and San Rafael importer Dynacraft BSC. Inc. to closely examine a new bicycle and its quick-release lever as evidence in the case.

Nine boys who were injured from 2000 to 2003 while riding bikes in California and other states have sued Wal-Mart and Dynacraft, accusing them of knowingly distributing bikes whose front wheels have a tendency to fall off because of faulty quick-release levers. They have asked the 12-person jury to return a multimillion-dollar verdict.

The defendants say that any front-wheel failures associated with the bicycles are most likely a result of improper assembly, parental neglect, failure to adjust the quick-release device, or children’s neglect or abuse of the bikes.

The bikes were mainly sold as mountain bikes under the Next brand name. The quick-release device was designed to hold the front-wheel axle to the frame and allow the wheel to be easily removed for repairs or transport.

Court records indicate that the release-lever breakage in the jury room occurred Tuesday afternoon, approximately five hours after deliberations began in the 8-week-long trial.

Defense attorneys had asked jurors to become familiar with how the bicycle’s quick-release device works. It is not clear how or why the lever broke, or which juror or jurors were handling it at the time.

A news release issued Wednesday morning by a consulting firm on behalf of the plaintiffs identified the broken bicycle in the jury room as a Next blue bike. “The bicycle came straight out of the box and had never been ridden,” the press release said.

Court records show that, after the jury forewoman came forward late Tuesday with the broken lever, the judge and attorneys involved in the case made a special trip to the jury room to examine the bicycle’s quick-release device.

Judge Michael Dufficy ejected the media and the public from the courtroom Wednesday morning, without explanation. The judge also ordered lawyers not to discuss the matter with reporters.

According to court records, the forewoman later explained to the judge in the presence of the jury how the lever had broken.

“As you know, the judge has put a gag order on the case and we can’t share any information,” said Sara Clark, a Wal-Mart spokeswoman in Bentonville, Ark.

A Dynacraft spokesman was unavailable for comment.

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As a lawyer, I find this absolutely hilarious. To sum up what happened, Wal-Mart was sued based on an allegation that a quick release was defective and it failed causing severe crash. Wal-Mart claimed the quick release was not at fault. Their lawyers introduced a new bike as an exhibit at the trial to show how the quick release worked then told the jury to be sure to check it out themselves during diliberations.

The QR broke when the jury was messing around with it. Doh!

If this is true, this will rank in legal circles right up there with asking OJ to try on the glove.

3

Yeah, but they could have been whaling on it to see how hard it was to break it.

4

Not to be the insensative prick of the group, but 3 years of selling God knows how many of these bikes (I’m guessing in the 100’s of thousands) and nine kids have bike wrecks? That does not seem like a significantly large number, not to mention not being worth a “multi million dollar verdict”.

As a youngster I had my front wheel fly off as I launched off a curb at full speed into the street. the front forks dug into the concrete and so did my chin. I was banged up pretty good, but not multi million dollar good. (did i mention that I was riding home from the bike shop?)

IMHO buy a POS bike and get a POS bike. We all know to check out our bike before going on rides. So should everyone else.

5

Yeah, but should something like that have broken w/ the small amount of force that would be generated by a hand? Imagine the forces you put on your bike going into a corner at 30mph! :wink:

I’m surprised that something like this hasn’t happened before. I remember standing at the return counter in Wal-mart a few months ago when this guy brought a bike back he had just bought that didn’t even have the brake cables attached. That’s somewhat dangerous if you dont know anything about repair/maintenance of a bike.

From working in a bike shop, I’ve have some humorous tales about people coming in and needed a serious amount of repairs done to their bike that they bought the previous weekend at Wal-mart…

BUT IT WAS SUCH A GOOD DEAL!!! :wink:

6

whoops !!!

it might be a design issue or it might be a materials issue.

there was an article just a short while ago in an bike trade mag about how a bad batch of korean steel ended up in an Asian spoke maker’s stock. and now many, many of these spokes are ending up breaking causing dealer headaches galore (and, soon, maybe some accidents).

not good.

7

<gasp!> You’re clearly not thinking like a plaintiff’s lawyer! Don’t you know it’s ALWAYS the big company’s fault. After all… they’re scumbags. Just look at the title of Matt’s thread!

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As a youngster I had my front wheel fly off as I launched off a curb at full speed into the street.
I’m glad I’m not the only one who’s done this. My wheel came off after I popped a wheelie (right after fixing a flat and not screwing the axle tight enough). I still have the scar where the pedal took a chunk out of my calf.

9

Wow Matt, is there really a WalMart in Marin? I wouldn’t think they would all ow them in such a swank county.

Seriously, I used to buy my kids those cheapo Walmart bikes but after noticing a frame crack at the chainstay, I pitched it and vowed never again. Those piece of shit $89 are a complete false economy.

Let’s hope Walmart gets nailed…hell they deserve it just on the quality of their assembly services.

10

And just like the OJ case, the defendant (Walmart) was found innocent…

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/02/09/MNGKKH5UU311.DTL

Marin jury rejects claim that Wal-Mart sold faulty bikes

Jim Doyle, Chronicle Staff Writer

Thursday, February 9, 2006

A Marin County jury today dismissed claims that Wal-Mart and a San Rafael bicycle importer knowingly sold bicycles with a defective part that caused the front wheels to fall off, injuring nine boys in California and other states.

The 12-person civil jury rejected claims that the nation’s largest retailer and Dynacraft BSC Inc. sold bicycles with faulty quick-release levers and were liable for millions of dollars in damages for the children’s injuries between 2000 and 2003.

Jurors, who had been deliberating since Tuesday after an eight-week-long trial, awarded no damages to the boys’ families.

The judgment followed a short break in deliberations on Wednesday when the jury forewoman explained to Judge Michael Dufficy how a quick-release lever had broken on a bicycle in the jury room the day before. Attorneys for Wal-Mart and the importer had invited jurors to examine the new bicycle.

Lawyers for the retailer and importer argued that problems with the bicycles alleged in the lawsuit were likely the result of improper assembly, parental neglect, failure to adjust the levers or the children’s abuse of the equipment.

The bikes were sold under the Next brand name and were mostly mountain bikes. The release levers are designed to hold the front-wheel axle to the frame and to allow users to remove the wheel easily for transport or repairs.

11

Somebody should sue that jury!

12

Seems like a good verdict…WalMart didnt make the bike…end of story. They sell razors too…what if someone gets cut? SUE SUE SUE

13

Very true. But if Walmart sold the bike knowing it was “defective”, that would be a whole other story. But that is a very very hard thing to prove without someone on the inside leaking the info.

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while I agree that we are a litigation happy culture and that 90% of the time, cases like this are relly people trying to pass the blame from their own stupidity onto “the man”, part of me wanted to see wal-mart take the hit. Some times karma works in mysterious ways

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I hope they dont shop at WalMart - would not want to support “the man”…and for that matter, hope they are on a system running some stupid Linux freeware as to not support “the man” at Microsoft…oh, and their hydrogen powered cars…I wonder how is that going? You know that profits from gas go right to “the man”…

Sure wish I was “the man” :slight_smile:

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don’t get me wrong, I have nothing against “the man”. I was just pointing out that people like to blame the higer ups for their own neglect. It’s never their fault, it’s the evil money hungy buissnesses