ATTORNEY SAYS FIRM NOT TOLD OF SYMPTOMS
By Therese Poletti
Mercury News
url: http://www.bayarea.com/mld/mercurynews/7258034.htm
Attorneys for IBM on Thursday tried to poke holes in the testimony of Jim Moore, one of the former IBM workers suing the computer giant, by demonstrating that he never told the company about many of the symptoms his lawyers argue are signs of systemic chemical poisoning.
Moore, 62, and plaintiff Alida Hernandez, 73, contend that they developed cancer as a result of their exposure to chemicals while working at IBM's Cottle Road disk-drive manufacturing facilities in San Jose. They allege that IBM concealed both the dangers of these chemicals and their illnesses from them. Moore is suffering from non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and Hernandez is in remission from breast cancer.
IBM attorney Robert Weber showed Moore copies of some of his past IBM health questionnaires. In these questionnaires, Moore did not report losing his sense of smell, did not describe several incidents where he became temporarily color blind and referred to his nasal problems as allergies. Moore testified to these health problems Wednesday and part of Thursday.
In the IBM questionnaire, Moore mentioned a ``blackout incident,'' but Weber pointed out that it was unclear whether this blackout incident referred to the color-blinding moments he described Wed-nesday when he worked on printed circuit boards.
Weber also noted that in IBM health questionnaires Moore described his nasal and sinus problems as seasonal allergies. ``I had sinus problems all the time,'' Moore responded.
``Especially in the first part of my career at IBM.'' He said that at the time, he thought his sinus condition was a result of allergies. Weber countered that Moore had filled out a questionnaire indicating that he got a plugged-up head in the summer. ``I had drippy sinus all the time, it was a little bit worse in the summer,'' Moore replied. Richard Alexander, the lead attorney for the plaintiffs, has argued that both recurrent nasal drip and constant nasal congestion are among the symptoms of systemic chemical poisoning.
Weber also asked Moore about his smoking habits. Moore started smoking when he was 18 or 19 years old, he said, and smoked until 1973, when he quit. In one of his IBM questionnaires, Moore responded that he previously smoked one to two packs a day. When Weber asked him about his habits, Moore pointed out that when he was at home, he would smoke about one pack a day, but at work he would smoke more than that because he would light cigarettes on brief breaks and not smoke the whole cigarette.
The court is in recess today.
IBM's cross-examination of Moore will continue Monday, and possibly Tuesday. Alexander plans to call next to the stand a former manager of one of IBM buildings on Cottle Road.
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Contact Therese Poletti at tpoletti@mercurynews.com or at (415) 477-2510.
Copyright 2003 -San Jose Mercury News
