Takata airbag victims looked like they had been shot or stabbed

Authorities first thought that Hien Thi Tran had been stabbed by an assailant. Part of the airbag canister that exploded and injured her is pictured on the right.
When police got to the scene of a minor car accident in Alhambra, California in September 2013, they thought the driver, Hai Ming Xu, had been shot in the face. A similar conclusion was reached by Orlando police responding to an accident a year later — they believed that the driver, Hien Thi Tran, had been the victim of a stabbing that might have caused the accident. But what allegedly killed both drivers was the device put in their cars to protect them – an airbag manufactured by Takata. Lawsuits and police reports say these airbags have exploded with such force that they sent shrapnel flying into the car’s drivers, fatally wounding Xu and Tran. Xu’s accident was in the parking lot

Former HR Director wins lawsuit against city, awarded more than $1 million in damages

Former City of Edmonds Human Resources Director Debi Humann was greeted by hugs and smiles from family outside the downtown Seattle federal courtroom Friday afternoon after a 10-person jury unanimously awarded her more than $1 million in her civil suit against the City of Edmonds and former Edmonds Mayor Mike Cooper.

“It’s been three long difficult years for my family, for me and for the law firm,” a tearful Humann said. “I’m just glad it’s over and I’m really hoping that this clears my name, which is what I wanted.”

Humann’s boyfriend of five years, Bob Uptagrafft, and her daughter Jen, were all smiles after the verdict, and gave Humann large hugs after she left the courtroom.

“Now we can get our lives back,” Uptagrafft

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