WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (BRAIN) — A Florida woman refiled a lawsuit Wednesday in U.S. District Court against Walmart after the front wheel detached from the e-bike she purchased there last year and injured her son.
After a U.S. district judge on Oct. 23 dismissed without prejudice the original suit filed in July, Therese Evans, identified as the natural parent and guardian of the rider who is a minor and identified in court documents as "L.E," is asking for more damages and is still demanding a jury trial. Evans now seeks damages in excess of $75,000, $25,000 more than initially.
The judge, Jeffrey T. Kuntz, wrote in part in granting Walmart's motion that the lawsuit did not provide factual information to support the retailer "knew or should have known" that the Ridstar e-bike was defective. The original complaint referenced a second Consumer Product Safety Commission warning in June 2026 about some Ridstar e-bikes, including one concerning the front wheel detaching without warning.
"The only direct factual allegations are the two CPSC warnings issued, but those were issued well after the subject incident occurred," Kuntz wrote.
The refiled suit cites two front-wheel-separation incidents before the Aug. 29, 2025, purchase that were reported to the CPSC through its SaferProducts.gov database. Both incidents involved the Ridstar Q20 or Q20 Lite models. Evans' bike is identified in the revised court document as a Ridstar Q20 model family "and is believed to be a Q20 or Q20 Lite variant."
Also added to the new complaint is a section questioning the bike's user manual, specifically about the front wheel assembly. The instructions call for the purchaser to insert the axle, position the wheel in the fork, install shims and nuts, and tighten "using installation tools." However, the complaint notes that the torque setting "or an objective procedure for confirming that the front-wheel-retention hardware was adequately secured" was not listed.
On Nov. 1, 2025, L.E. was riding the e-bike when the front wheel detached. He was thrown and suffered "severe and permanent injuries." On Aug. 14, medical bills were presented that totaled over $120,000.
