Lawsuit Blames Monsanto’s Roundup for Causing Cancer in Oklahomans

A Del City couple and a woman from Broken Arrow have filed a federal lawsuit against Monsanto Company, blaming the company’s herbicide Roundup for the cancer they suffer.

The lawsuit, CV-00561 was filed in Oklahoma City U.S. District Court by Wanda Clarke and her husband Donald Shepherd who live in Del City and by Esmeralda Hernandez of Broken Arrow. The suit says Clarke suffers from “Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma”. Hernandez suffers “large B-Cell non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma.”

They contend that Roundup, otherwise known as glyphosate is “defective, dangerous to human health, unfit and unsuitable to be marketed and sold in commerce and lacked proper warnings and directions as to the dangers associated with its use.”

The lawsuit contends the St. Louis, Missouri-based company has relied on fraudulent scientific tests dating back to the 1970s to make its public claim that Roundup is safe and not harmful to humans. It cites numerous studies that contend the chemical is harmful.

The suit lists several allegations against Monsanto, accusing the firm of “negligently failing to adequately and correctly warn the Plaintiff, the public, the medial and agricultural professions and the EPA of the dangers of Roundup.” It contends Monsanto was negligent in proclaiming Roundup was safe for its intended purpose.

The suit was filed Monday and a summons has been issued to Monsanto, alerting the company of the legal action. The Sill Law Group based in Edmond filed the suit.