Family of Man Allergic to Shellfish Sues Vegas Eatery for his Wrongful Death

Posted on: December 30, 2024, 05:00h. 

Last updated on: December 30, 2024, 05:01h.

Corey Levitan Read More

Expertise: Commercial Gaming, Entertainment, Expert Insight, Las Vegas, Restaurants, Las Vegas Myths.

Abraham Williams told his server at Beauty & Essex, an upscale restaurant at the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, that he was allergic to shellfish when he ordered spaghettini with pesto sauce one evening last year. But shellfish is what he got, according to a wrongful death lawsuit filed last week and first reported by the Las Vegas Review Journal on Monday.

After one bite, Williams went into anaphylactic shock. He died on April 30, 2023, and his death certificate lists the cause of death as “food associated allergic reaction.”

The civil suit, which seeks unspecified damages, claims that Williams was served an “unsafe” meal with “known allergens.” It accuses not only Beauty & Essex and the Cosmopolitan but the Clark County Fire Department and Community Ambulance of acting in a negligent manner that contributed to Williams’ death.

According to the claim, though employees at both the restaurant and resort were trained in medical response, they “stood by watching as (Williams) remained breathless, choking for air, and provided no assistance of any kind” after Williams was taken outside by friends who also dialed 911.

In addition, the lawsuit claims, these employees “created a barricade around (Williams) and refused to let anyone through to perform life saving techniques.”

Once the fire department and ambulance arrived, the suit notes that EMT workers began CPR and inserted an “airway device.” However, it claims that they “failed to timely administer oxygen” or to intubate Williams correctly, allowing him to pull out his air tube. Furthermoer, the suit claims, an EKG, which would have “properly monitored” his cardiac arrest, was not performed.

The lawsuit was filed by attorneys Christian Morris and Jamie McInelly in Clark County District Court last week on behalf of Williams’ parents, Kenneth and Rochelle Williams, and Angela Gaboury, who is listed as an administrator of Williams’ estate.

Upon arriving at the hospital, the complaint said, Williams went into respiratory and cardiac arrest, and doctors could not re-intubate him due to swelling. He was placed on a ventilator, which his family removed so he could die, two days later, at Nathan Adelson Hospice.

The suit said the plaintiffs continue to “suffer from grief and sorrow” due to Williams’ death.