Marie Pierre-Louis v. Delonghi America, Inc. Et Al.

887 N.Y.S.2d 628 (2009)

Facts

A fire that occurred at the home of Antoneen Darden-McCall (Dardem) which took the life of Cassandra Pierre-Louis (decedent). The decedent was a guest of Darden's son, also known as Marcus McCall (Marques). A portable oil-filled space heater, manufactured by the DeLonghi and sold by Home Depot and purchased by Darden the day before the fire, caused the fire. Darden's other son, Matthew McCall took the heater out of the box when it was brought home, and, unintentionally, placed it upside down. Matthew was the only user of the heater prior to the fire. P sued Ds alleging strict products liability. P alleged that the heater was defectively manufactured and/or designed, and alleged a failure to warn regarding the use of the heater. Ds moved for summary judgment dismissing the complaints. The Supreme Court denied the motion.