E-Cigarette User Awarded $1.9 Million in Lawsuit

RIVERSIDE, Calif. (AP) — A California woman burned by an exploding electronic cigarette has won a jury verdict from the distributor, wholesaler and seller of the product.

Attorney Gregory Bentley says his client was awarded $1.9 million yesterday in a product liability case in Riverside Superior Court.

Bentley says Jennifer Ries was scarred for life by second-degree burns on her buttocks, legs and hand after plugging the VapCigs cigarette charger into her car.

Bentley says Ries and her husband were on their way to the airport in March 2013 when the battery exploded and ignited her dress and car seat. It also spilled corrosive materials on her.

Lawyers for defendants in the case did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment.