William Powers v. American Crocodile International Group, Inc.

I. BACKGROUND

Plaintiffs claim they received an electric massage chair from a nonparty, Paul Benson. (ECF No. 15, PageID.91, ¶ 18.) Benson originally purchased the chair from ACIG, which shipped the chair to Benson while he lived in Michigan. (Id., ¶ 16.) Benson had used the chair for eight years without incident. (Id., ¶ 17.) According to Plaintiffs, the chair unexpectedly broke out in flames. (Id., ¶ 19.) The resulting fire allegedly consumed the entirety of Plaintiffs’ home. (Id., ¶ 21.) Plaintiffs also claim to have lost $300,000 of “cryptocurrency,” and three cats. (Id., PageID.92, ¶¶ 23-24.) One of the cats was supposed to have been “the world’s tallest domestic cat,”

while another sported “the world’s longest tail on a domestic cat.” (Id., ¶ 26.) Plaintiffs claim to have suffered significant emotional trauma in addition to the material losses of their home and the economic value of their “record-holding cats.” (Id., PageID.92-93, ¶¶ 27-35, 38.) Plaintiffs allege there was “a defect in the design and/or manufacture of the internal electrical system of the subject chair [that] rendered it unreasonably susceptible to catching fire.” (Id., PageID.93, ¶ 37.) The chair’s…