A jury awarded a settlement of $2.6 million in favor of Jean Holmes who was exposed to toxic asbestos particles. Jean died in April 2006 from asbestos related cancer, mesothelioma.  Her exposure to asbestos took place when she washed her husband’s clothes. Her husband, Donald Homes, was a worker at the Union Asbestos and Rubber Company, in Bloomington, IL in the 1960’s.

The lawsuit agreed that Mr Holme's workplace had exposed him to toxic asbestos particles that would have been transferred with him on arrival to his home, resulting in another mesothelioma victim.  Mr. Holmes carried these deadly particles home to his wife, who shook them out of the clothing and breathed the particles into her lungs, while she was preparing the clothes to be washed.

Honeywell International and Pneumo Abex LLC were found guilty of failing to warn the workers who used their products about the dangers of asbestos.  It was claimed these defendants knew about the dangers of asbestos for a number of years and conspired to suppress the information about the dangers, so that productivity was not affected.  The jury found the defendants responsible for their failure to warn the workers about these hazards.