Heath Eklund v. Heidelberg USA, Inc. and Heidelberg Eastern, Inc., Circuit Court of Washington County, Arkansas

An unsafe paper cutter severed the plaintiff’s fingers.

While at work the plaintiff was attempting to cut paper using a programmable, high speed paper guillotine, the Polar-Mohr 115 cutting machine which was provided by Heidelberg USA, Inc. After he used it to make a cut, he reset the machine and was attempting to clean the waste left behind, when he placed his hand into the machine and onto the material he had cut, at that moment the clamp came down and amputated four of his fingers. When the plaintiff reset the machine it should have cleared the previous cut from the machine’s memory and stopped all automatic cutting.

The plaintiff alleged that the defendants were liable for the injuries caused by the machine because they had provided an unsafe and defective product.

The lawyers handling the case were Bruce McMath, James G. Lingle, and Joanne McCracken. This case was settled.