Reed v. City of Chicago

J.C. Reed, known to police as mentally unstable and previously suicidal, was placed in a Chicago detention cell wearing a paper gown specifically designed to tear away if used to attempt hanging, but the gown failed to tear when Reed used it to take his own life; his estate (plaintiff) sued the City, officers, and the gown's manufacturers, including Cypress Medical Products (defendant), for breach of implied and express warranties, alleging the gown failed to properly tear away as designed. Cypress moved to dismiss the warranty claim, arguing Reed had no privity with Cypress since he never purchased the gown himself.