Ode to my friend and great lawyer, Charlie Wiggins – he made Tacos safe again

Over two decades ago I tried an E. coli case against a school that sickened eleven kids. We won at trial, but the school’s lawyers appealed. We were fortunate to have Charlie Wiggins brief and argue our position on appeal. Charlie, in his standard bow tied way, argued that a taco was a product and that the school was the manufacturer. It therefore was strictly liable for manufacturing and selling a defective product (one with E. coli in it). It was justice for these eleven kids and has made it clear that manufacturers of food are held to a high standard. Thank you Charlie. You are missed.

The Finley School District denied it was the manufacturer of the taco despite the fact that it prepared and served a taco lunch for its students using frozen ground beef supplied by Northern States Beef. The District thawed and cooked the meat;  drained off the fat and rinsed the meat;  added refried beans, tomato paste, and seasonings;  and mixed it up.   It then delivered the meat mixture in pans to the schools, including Finley Elementary, for distribution from cafeterias.

Eleven children became infected with E. coli O157:H7 bacteria in October 1998.   Ten attended Finley Elementary.   The eleventh was a two-year-old playmate of two of the affected students.   The Benton-Franklin Health District investigated.   Members of the Washington State Department of Health and the National Centers for Disease Control joined the investigation.   Dr. John Kobayashi, epidemiologist for communicable diseases for the Washington State Department of Health, headed the investigation.   The investigative team concluded:

As no other common school activity was identified other than eating at the school cafeteria, it is reasonable to conclude that a meal served at the school was the likely source of illness.   Cattle are the known reservoir of E. coli O157:H7.   Thus, it is likely that consuming the ground beef served in the tacos was the vehicle.

The Appellate Court concluded: On the merits, the District denies that it was a “manufacturer” as defined by the Product Liability Act, in any event.   Procedurally, the District argues that this is a fact question for the jury and should not, therefore, have been resolved as a question of law.

As to the District’s argument that the question is one of fact, we note that the material facts here were not disputed.   The District conceded that it stored, thawed, cooked, drained, rinsed, seasoned, and mixed what started out as frozen ground beef.   The question of what legal consequences might flow from these activities-whether this constitutes manufacturing-was then properly decided by the court as a matter of law.   See, e.g., Harris v. Ski Park Farms, Inc., 120 Wash.2d 727, 736, 844 P.2d 1006 (1993).

Under the Act, a “ ‘manufacturer’ includes a product seller who designs, produces, makes, fabricates, constructs, or remanufactures the relevant product or component part of a product before its sale to a user or consumer.”  RCW 7.72.010(2).   Since the relevant synonyms are not defined by the statute, we give them their dictionary definition.  Washburn v. Beatt Equip. Co., 120 Wash.2d 246, 259-61, 840 P.2d 860 (1992).

To “design” includes “the process of selecting the means and contriving the elements, steps, and procedures for producing what will adequately satisfy some need.”   Webster’s Third New International Dictionary 611 (1993).   To “produce” means “to give being, form, or shape to:  make often from raw materials.”   Webster’s, at 1810.  “Make” includes “to bring (a material thing) into being by forming, shaping, or altering material.”   Webster’s, at 1363.   “Fabricate” includes “to form into a whole by uniting parts.”   Webster’s, at 811.  “Construct” includes “to form, make, or create by combining parts or elements.”   Webster’s, at 489.

 Here, the District began the process with 180 pounds of frozen ground beef.   The frozen beef was thawed and then cooked in a steam kettle.   Once cooked, the fat was drained off.   The meat was rinsed.   And refried beans, tomato paste, and seasonings were added.   The taco meat was later scooped onto a tortilla along with other condiments and side dishes and then served.

The District thus had a “design” for cooking this meat-its recipe.   It made taco meat by combining ground beef with other ingredients.   It then used the taco meat as part of its taco lunch.   The District’s cooking process falls neatly into each of the definitions for “produce,” “make,” “fabricate,” and “construct.”   Webster’s, at 1810, 1363, 811, 489.

The District was not merely a retailer.   The reason for excluding nonmanufacturing retailers from strict liability is to distinguish “between those who have actual control over the product and those who act as mere conduits in the chain of distribution.”  Buttelo v. S.A. Woods-Yates Am. Mach. Co., 72 Wash.App. 397, 404, 864 P.2d 948 (1993).   The District did not simply resell frozen ground beef, seasonings, and tortillas as a grocery store would.   It took raw ingredients and made a taco lunch out of them.   It then sold them.

The District is a manufacturer-a manufacturer of tacos.

Charlie Wiggins passed away peacefully on May 27th on Bainbridge Island due to complications from Parkinson’s disease. He was 77. He was a loving husband, father, and grandfather who was respected and loved by many.

Charlie’s life was shaped by his kindness, optimism, and a deep passion for justice. This passion took him from Albania, where he assisted in the judiciary’s transition to democracy, to the Washington State Supreme Court, where he served from 2010 until his retirement in 2020.

When looking back on his time as a Supreme Court Justice, Charlie considered the McCleary vs. Washington decision to be the most impactful of his tenure. This ruling resulted in the state increasing funding for basic K-12 education by billions of dollars.

Prior to serving on the Court, Charlie operated a law firm on Bainbridge Island specializing in appellate law and served as a judge on the Washington Court of Appeals. His legal career began in 1976 at the firm Edwards, Sieh, Wiggins & Hathaway. It was on the ferry commuting from his home on Bainbridge Island to the law firm in Seattle where he met his wife, Nancy.

Giving back was always important to Charlie. A dedicated member of Rolling Bay Presbyterian Church, he served as an elder and joined youth mission trips to build homes in Tijuana. In 2010, the Kitsap Bar Association honored Charlie with its Humanitarian Award for organizing attorneys to build homes for single mothers. In 2004, he was named Volunteer of the Year by the Union Gospel Mission legal clinic and also served as president of the Washington Chapter of the American Judicature Society. Over the years he also volunteered with many other organizations.

Charlie never sat still. Some of his hobbies included building a wooden kayak, digging geoducks, juggling, and re-enacting the Washington State Constitutional Convention in costume. He snowboarded well into his seventies, much to his family’s dismay. All family trips included Charlie dragging along his fancy case of poker chips, in hopes of starting a game or two. Charlie was never without his signature bow tie in court or in the office. His collection numbered well over 100.

As the son of a career warrant officer, Charlie grew up around the world. When Charlie was two, the family transferred via troop ship to Panama at the tail end of a hurricane. Much to Charlie’s delight, his crib rolled port to starboard across the cabin, possibly spawning his lifelong love of boating. He and his family enjoyed many boating trips to the San Juans.

He graduated magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Princeton University and received his Juris Doctorate from Duke Law School.

Charlie is survived by his wife Nancy, their children Amy (Michael) and Sam (Kayla), his grandchildren Jude and Thora, and his three sisters, Jane, Helen, and Elizabeth. He is preceded in death by his parents, Charles and Jane Wiggins.

Republished with permission from Bill Marler and Marler Clark. Copyright (c) Marler Clark LLP, PS. All rights reserved.

Source: https://www.marlerblog.com/case-news/ode-to-my-friend-and-great-lawyer-charlie-wiggins-he-made-tacos-safe-again/