Jury Hands Down $20 Million Verdict Against Johnson & Johnson Over Woman's Vaginal Mesh Implant Injuries

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- A jury ruled that Johnson & Johnson needs to shell out millions for a New Jersey woman who suffered serious injuries after being implanted with a vaginal mesh device.

The jury awarded 56-year-old Peggy Engleman $20 million -- $2.5 million in compensatory and $17.5 in punitive damages – after her attorneys claimed during a three-week trial in Common Pleas Court that the TVT-Secur medical device was not only defective, but that Johnson & Johnson and its Ethicon subsidiary failed to warn of its risks.

Engleman had the device implanted in her in 2007 in an effort to relieve stress urinary incontinence. However, the implant failed and her condition returned. Attorneys argued that Engleman also began experiencing pain and discomfort when the polypropylene mesh from the implant eroded inside of her. Doctors were unable to remove all the remaining mesh despite three surgeries.

Engleman says she now suffers from chronic vaginal pain and pelvic floor spasms, and has also developed a permanent urinary dysfunction.

"I'm happy I could be a voice for other women," Engleman said in a statement. "It's been a nightmare, and I feel justice was truly served today."

This is the third consecutive eight-figure award against Johnson & Johnson in a mesh case in a Philadelphia courtroom. An Indiana woman received a $12.5 million in a 2015 verdict, and in 2016, a Toms River, New Jersey, woman was awarded $13.5 million.