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Largo woman died after eating blueberries from Publix, lawsuit says

tampabay.com · 15h · first reportShare

A Largo man has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Publix and a South Florida food distributor, alleging his wife became sick and died after eating bacteria-contaminated frozen blueberries that were later the subject of a recall. The lawsuit, filed Thursday by Richard Mullins in Pinellas County, states that his wife, Karla, died, and another family member, Spencer Mullins, became sick after eating the berries supplied to Publix by Quirch Foods Inc., a food distributor based in Coral Gables. The berries were contaminated by a pathogenic strain of Escherichia coli, also known as E. coli, the lawsuit states. Spencer Mullins survived and is a co-plaintiff also seeking damages. The complaint does not list his relation to Richard and Karla Mullins, but probate records show he is their son and lived with them at the time of Karla Mullins’ death. The attorney who filed the lawsuit on the Mullins’ behalf, Christian M. Leger of Morgan & Morgan, did not respond to voicemail and email messages