Dole's lawyer, Rick McNight, declined to comment Monday. In the trial, he argued that the workers failed to establish proof that they had been exposed to too much DBCP.
McNight stressed in closing arguments that half of the workers had not been proved to be fertile before exposure, and alleged that many had misstated their conditions under oath. He also pointed out that many Dole executives who were involved in decisions about the chemical, made over 30 years ago, are now dead.
At the trial, workers testified that they could tell something was not normal on the Nicaraguan farms where they worked, but said Dole did not tell them what it was.
Worker Jose Gutierrez testified that in the mornings, he would smell "an odor sort of like copper. It was a foul odor. It would drop from the leaves and it would fall upon us." Some workers slept on the plantation, where shelters were open on all sides, according to transcripts of testimony by workers.
In closing arguments, Gennaro Filice, a lawyer for Dow, urged jurors to "take into account their society and where they live" to compensate "in the context of their world and their society."
Chaney quickly intervened, instructing jurors that they "must not be influenced by the plaintiff's disability, gender, race, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation, age, national origin or socioeconomic status."
The focus moves today to whether Dole and Dow should face punitive damages. Miller earlier argued that punitive damages were justified, citing a 1963 warning from a Dole pineapple researcher that DBCP is hazardous. He also cited a 1960 Dow report that concluded that spraying DBCP could cause "serious adverse effects."
Miller produced a memo written in 1978 by Jack DeMent, a senior Dole executive, that reflected a proposed policy that "people in the areas to be treated will be notified to the effect in the language of the workers involved." Miller said a comment found on the draft undercut the good intentions. The comment read: "This is not operationally feasible and does not need to be implemented."
Dole, based in Westlake Village, said the verdict was not likely to have a material effect on its finances. A Dow spokesman praised jurors, while disagreeing with the verdict in favor of the six workers, and declined to comment further.
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john.spano@latimes.com
