Judge Paves Way For Trial In Cintas Wrongful Death

JUSTIN JUOZAPAVICIUS

TULSA, Okla. (AP) — A federal judge has denied a request by Cintas Corp. for summary judgment in a 2007 wrongful death lawsuit in Tulsa, a ruling that paves the way for a jury to hear the case against the nation's largest uniform supplier next year.

U.S. District Judge Claire Eagan wrote in a 31-page opinion that there is "conflicting evidence" whether Cintas managers knew workers in company laundries were breaking safety rules to save time, but did nothing to stop them.

Eagan wrote that videotape evidence taken from the Tulsa plant "shows employees routinely disregarding Cintas' safety procedures."

Amalia Diaz Torres is suing Cincinnati-based Cintas, claiming the company's plant managers knew about — and even encouraged — the dangerous working practices that led to the death of her husband, Eleazar Torres-Gomez, in 2007.

Cintas has denied those allegations, saying it never puts profits over worker safety.

A trial is scheduled for April 19 in Tulsa.

Even though she sided with Torres in the opinion on Friday, Judge Eagan cautioned her legal team that it still "must demonstrate that Cintas knew with substantial certainty that Torres-Gomez could be injured, and it is not enough to show that Cintas acted negligently."