Wrongful death suit filed against Viva Mexico owners

Williams-Pennel was one of around 260 people who reported becoming ill after eating at Viva Mexico in late October, in what county health officials called one of the worst outbreaks of food-borne illness they had seen in years. Sixty-one of those reporting illness were confirmed by lab tests to be infected with the shigella bacteria.

In most cases, however, the symptoms of shigellosis generally resolve themselves in five to seven days. Williams-Pennel was the only fatality in October's outbreak.

In a complaint filed last Thursday, husband Dennis Pennel and daughters Vanessa Williams and Nicole MacInnis allege that Viva Mexico's owners, Martin and Isabel Toro, were negligent and in breach of an implied warranty on their food, and are therefore liable for Williams-Pennel's death.

They have demanded a jury trial, and are asking for unspecified damages exceeding $10,000 for the loss of Williams-Pennel's comfort, society, attention, services and support.

This is the second lawsuit filed against the Toros in the aftermath of the shigella outbreak. Suzie and Lapuyade and their son Maurice, filed for damages on Nov. 6 after Suzie and Maurice were hospitalized for shigellosis.

Health officials never successfully pinpointed the source of the bacteria. All of the restaurant's employees and produce tested negative for shigella, which left health inspectors with the possibility that a customer had carried the infection into the restaurant.

Other violations were found at the restaurant, however. The restaurant remained closed for a month while the owners installed a handwashing sink and improved safety procedures.<