A Nebraska man is suing Wal-Mart for the death of his wife. According to the man, a faulty plastic bag from the super-chain store is responsible for his being a widow.

According to William Freis, his wife Lynette went shopping at Wal-Mart on Apr. 16, 2010. On that day, the cashier gave Lynette one plastic bag to fit her two-pound bag of rice and two 42-ounce cans of La Choy.

While walking to her car, the bag broke and one of the cans within fell on Lynette's foot. As a result, Lynette's right big toe was broken and suffered a large cut.

According to Gage Cobb, Freis' attorney, the toe injuries led to an infection.

Lynette underwent two surgeries and several rounds of antibiotics. Still, the infection spread and her condition worsened. The infection "ultimately resulted in her death on March 12, 2011," according to the lawsuit.

The lawsuit claims that Wal-Mart is negligent because it did not properly train its employees. Therefore, the employees were neither aware of how to avoid the overfilling of grocery bags, nor of when to double bag purchases. Furthermore, the suit alleges that Freis was given a defective grocery bag.

"Customer safety is a top priority, and we take it seriously any time an injury is reported in one of our stores," Randy Hargrove, a spokesman for Wal-Mart said in an interview with Journal Star.

According to Hargrove, Wal-Mart is investigating the allegations and will handle the case appropriately.

The suit asks for $656,000 to cover medical expenses. In addition, Freis is seeking an unspecified amount for pain and suffering, loss of consortium and funeral expenses.

Before confronting Wal-Mart, Freis filed a lawsuit against Arkansas-based Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the distributor of its plastic bags, Missouri-based Bunzl Distribution and the manufacturer, Hilex Poly Co. of South Carolina, in Sarpy County District Court.

The case was transferred to U.S. District Court in Omaha late last week. The move to federal court was sought out by Heidi Guttau-Fox, Wal-Mart's attorney.

Lynette was shopping at a Wal-Mart Supercenter on 15th St.