French Boy Permanently Disabled By E. Coli In Frozen Beef

Two former executives of a frozen food company in France are about to go on trial for negligence in the case of a shocking E. coli outbreak that seriously sickened 17 people, mostly children, and left one little boy permanently disabled after eating frozen beef patties from their local grocery store.

According to The Local, in 2011 a two-year-old boy named Nolan Moittie was one of 17 people in France who became seriously ill after eating steak hachés, or chopped steak patties, that were contaminated with E. coli bacteria, and which had been sold frozen at a Lidl grocery store. E. coli is exceptionally dangerous to children and can even be fatal, and the illness caused the two-year-old boy to have a heart attack and fall into a coma while in the hospital.

The E. coli infection caused irreversible damage, and while Moittie survived and is now eight years old, he can't talk and no longer has the use of 80 percent of his body. Doctors say the damage is irreversible.

The frozen beef patties were sold by a French frozen food company called SEB, which has since gone out of business. Two SEB executives are facing criminal charges in the E. coli outbreak, however. The former head of SEB and the former head of quality and hygiene have been charged with a "deliberate violation of safety obligations" that put customers at risk and caused involuntary injuries. Their trial began on Tuesday, June 6, and the two men face prison if convicted.

E. coli is extremely dangerous, especially to children, and it's been responsible for some of history's worst food poisoning outbreaks.