Lawsuit: Illinois Woman, 80, Died After Becoming Trapped by Sleep Number Bed Getty/Stock Photo

Bed company Sleep Number is being sued because an elderly Illinois woman died after becoming trapped in between her bed and the wall for two days in March 2023.

Angela Moan filed the lawsuit in December, claiming that her mother, 80-year-old Rosalind Walker, “suffered the entire time” until her ultimate death on April 3, 2023, after being put on hospice care, KSDK reported.

Emergency responders were able to free Walker and take her to the hospital on March 3 — about 48 hours after the bed lowered without warning and trapped her — but she never recovered, her daughter claims. 

The lawsuit, which named Sleep Number and manufacturer Leggett & Platt as defendants, said that the bed was purchased in 2014 in Missouri and had a 25-year warranty.

Moan is now seeking compensation for her mother’s prolonged suffering, her medical bills, and “loss of her society,” alleging that the manufacturers “designed and sold a Sleep Number bed that did not have adequate instructions or cautionary language in the instructions or on the bed, alerting Mrs. Walker not to go between the bed and the wall as she could be trapped.”

The companies are also accused of designing a bed “that did not have an adequate audible warning alerting Mrs. Walker it was declining” or have an “appropriate release mechanism which would have allowed Mrs. Walker to free herself from the trapped position.”

Sleep Number acknowledged the tragic incident in a statement obtained by KSDK and said that its legal team is reviewing the suit: 

Sleep Number is aware of the recent lawsuit filed against the company and Leggett and Platt, the manufacturer of its adjustable base. The suit alleges that a malfunctioning adjustable base purchased in 2014 was a contributing factor in the death of Rosalind Walker. We understand that this incident is alleged to have occurred in March 2023; we were notified of the alleged incident after the lawsuit was filed yesterday, December 10. We extend our sincere condolences to the family of Ms. Walker for their tragic loss. 

Currently, our legal team is reviewing the lawsuit. Sleep Number stands by the design and safety of its products and is complying with any necessary inquiries or actions.

“It was a tragic loss. Mrs. Walker was trapped for two days and then she died,” Ted Gianaris, Moan’s lawyer, said. “Something as common as an adjustable bed should not trap an elderly person. We look forward to hearing from Sleep Number about why it did not sell a safer bed.”

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