Suit: He Skipped 2 Meals, Felt 'Lightheaded.' A Woman Died

Lawsuit says driver's Whole30 diet caused accident that killed Susan Matthies, 68
By Bob Cronin,  Newser Staff
Posted Mar 11, 2019 11:28 AM CDT
$3.5M Suit Blames Driver's Diet for Fatal Accident
A nutrition label. The Whole30 program eliminates certain ingredients from diets but doesn't say to skip meals.   (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

A lawsuit blames a driver and his diet for the death of a woman struck in a Safeway parking lot, saying he was lightheaded after skipping two meals when he lost control of the truck he was driving. Susan Matthies, 68, was putting groceries in her car in Dallas, Ore., when she was run over in September 2017, BuzzFeed reports; she died that night. Morgan was on the Whole30 diet and "feeling nauseous and lightheaded" after skipping breakfast and lunch that day, said the complaint, which was obtained by the Oregonian.

Matthies' family told BuzzFeed that the information about Morgan came from the police report; the program rules mandate eliminating some foods, drinks, and ingredients, but they don't say anything about skipping meals entirely. The suit says Morgan should have known he posed a danger in that condition and seeks $3.5 million. Morgan wasn't charged in the death. Officials said the evidence didn't indicate that he was intoxicated or criminally negligent, per the Oregonian, though it did show he was dieting. (More dieting stories.)

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