AMD Sued Over Birth Defects

Austin-based chip company Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) has once again found itself in hot water, and this time it's over something far more visible than damaging the Edwards Aquifer. According to a lawsuit filed with the Travis County District Court on Wednesday, the company is responsible for multiple birth defects in at least one child of a former AMD employee who worked in the manufacturing "clean room."

Austin resident Maria Ruiz worked at one of the manufacturing facilities between 1988 to 2002, and claims to have been exposed to a variety of nasty toxic chemicals; in several instances, she had to undergo medical care after inhaling toxic fumes. Two of these, ethylene glycol monoethyl ether acetate and 2-ethoxyethyl acetate, may have caused the birth defects in her son, Ryan Ruiz.

Ryan was born with a host of birth defects, including a missing right arm below his elbow, brain injuries, learning disabilities, and "great mental pain and anguish." The suit also includes medical
malpractice allegations against members of the Austin Regional Clinic.

"Like millions of Americans, Maria Ruiz did not realize that 'clean rooms' are designed to keep damaging dust particles from semiconductor wafers during manufacturing, not to protect men and women exposed to a spectrum of hazardous chemicals and fumes," said Steven J. Phillips, one of the lawyers working on Ruiz's case.