Personal Injury Law

A Day in Dubai - Doctor, Restaurant Supervisor and Cook Fined and Ordered to pay "Blood Money"

By Bill Marler, Esq.

After giving my speech this afternoon at the 6th Annual Dubai Food Safety Conference, I was approached by a reporter or Gulf News about my thoughts that the doctor, a restaurant's cook and a supervisor had been fined Dh10,000 each (about $2,750US), and ordered to jointly pay blood money (money or some sort of compensation paid by an offender (usually a murderer) or his family group to the family or kin group of the victim) to the parents of a five-year-old boy, Nathan D'Souza, and his seven-year-old sister Chelsea, who died of food poisoning in 2009.

The cook and the supervisor were convicted of violating the public health requirements of Dubai Municipality through unhygienic practices in preserving the food, which led to bacterial contamination. The doctor was convicted of providing negligent medical care to the children when they were admitted to hospital after eating a meal from the restaurant.

According to press reports, the deaths of these two children has been one of the latest in a series of high profile food poisoning incidences:

May 31, 2009: A four-year-old girl died of suspected food poisoning in Sharjah. The Indian family of four rushed to the hospital after series of vomiting.

November 4, 2008: Fourteen employees at a cement factory were hospitalized after consuming rotten food prepared at the factory kitchen in Ras Al Khaimah.

March 20, 2008: Six people fall ill after eating buffet food at a restaurant in Ibn Battuta Mall.

August 26, 2007: A 10-year-old girl died of food poisoning in Abu Dhabi

April 14, 2007: A three-year-old died of suspected food poisoning in Sharjah

It seemed like the people in the audience were engaged and focused.

Full post as published by Marler Blog on February 28, 2011 (boomark / email).