The facts of the case are straightforward but significant. Mecene Laguerre was working at a JBS meat-packing facility in Ottumwa, Iowa, when he suffered a serious injury on the job. While performing duties as a “skinner,” Laguerre was accidentally struck by a coworker wielding a mechanized knife, resulting in a degloving injury to his right arm. He was taken to the hospital, where doctors grafted skin from his right thigh to his right arm. Although Laguerre returned to work within a month, he continued to experience pain, itching, tightness, and limited range of motion in his right arm, as well as pain in his right leg.
