Camp Lejeune Water Caused Stage 4 Chronic Kidney Disease, Interstitial Nephritis: Lawsuit

A former U.S. Marine indicates in a recently filed lawsuit that he developed severe kidney problems from exposure to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune in the 1960s, including stage 4 chronic kidney disease (CKD) and chronic interstitial nephritis.

The complaint (PDF) was filed by Victor Malafronte in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina on September 13, pursuing compensation under the recently passed Camp Lejeune Justice Act of 2022, including reimbursement for his medical expenses, lost wages, and pain and suffering caused by the federal government’s decades-long failure to ensure the safety of the water at Camp Lejeune.

Exposure to Camp Lejeune Water Caused Long-Term Side Effects

Malafronte is one of several thousands veterans and military family members now pursuing a Camp Lejeune water contamination lawsuit, indicating that injuries they suffered were caused by contaminants in the water at the Marine base.

In addition to lawsuits over kidney problems, claims have also been presented by individuals diagnosed with various forms of cancer, Parkinson’s disease, birth defects, infertility and other side effects from Camp Lejeune water.

Veterans, surviving family members and other individuals exposed to Camp Lejeune water between August 1, 1953 and December 31, 1987 are now able to pursue settlements from the U.S. government, following the signing of the PACT Act last month, which opened a two-year window for claims that were previously barred by the North Carolina statute of limitations to be represented in the Eastern District of North Carolina.

Chronic Kidney Disease from Camp Lejeune Water

According to the lawsuit, Malafronte, of California, was stationed at the Camp Lejeune military training base in North Carolina several times between 1963 and 1967. While there, he, like other Marines, families and contractors, were exposed to highly contaminated and toxic water which they drank, used to bath and clean their clothes and dishes for years.

“While on base, Mr. Malafronte began to experience severe, debilitating headaches that continue to afflict him to this day,” the lawsuit states. “He has subsequently been diagnosed with stage 4 chronic kidney disease and severe chronic interstitial nephritis. There is overwhelming evidence that the contaminants found in the water at Camp Lejeune caused, or were at least as likely as not the cause of, his injuries.”

Malafronte indicates his kidney problems from Camp Lejeune water contaminants have prevented him from maintaining steady employment, often having to leave a job after only a few months due to illness. His health problems, and the resulting depression, led him to attempt suicide at least once.

He originally filed an administrative claim for the injuries linked to his military service in September 2011, but the U.S. Navy denied that claim in 2019. Under the new law, the government has waived both sovereign immunity and statute of limitations defenses, allowing Malafronte to pursue the claim and seek a Camp Lejeune water contamination settlement.

September 2022 Camp Lejeune Water Lawsuit Update

Since the PACT Act was signed last month, the U.S. Navy has already received notice of at 5,000 new Camp Lejeune water contamination injury claims, involving diagnosed among veterans stations at the base, military family members who lived on the base and civilian contractors who regularly worked on the base for at least 30 days.

Estimates suggest that more than a million Marines and their family members were exposed to contaminated Camp Lejeune water between the early 1950s and late 1980s, with some reports suggesting that toxic chemicals from Camp Lejeune may be responsible for more than 50,000 cases of breast cancer, 28,000 cases of bladder cancer, and 24,000 cases of renal cancer, as well as thousands of cases involve Parkinson’s disease and other health complications. It is also believed that Camp Lejeune water caused birth defects and wrongful death for thousands of unborn children exposed in utero.

For months before the law went into effect, Camp Lejeune toxic water lawyers were investigating potential claims, and preparing to present claims by gathering evidence to document that specific injuries that can be linked to chemicals found on the base.

Prior to filing a lawsuit in court, each claim must be formally denied by the U.S. government in writing, or six months must pass after the administrative claim is submitted. Then a complaint can be brought in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina, which has been granted exclusive jurisdiction in the litigation.

Out of the thousands of claims presented, only a handful of Camp Lejeune water contamination lawsuits and class action claims have already been formally brought in the court system. However, that is expected to change quickly, once the six month waiting period for the earliest filed administrative claims expires in early February 2023.