Gran, 80, killed in freak accident after trapped between wall and 'malfunctioning foldaway bed' that 'lowered itself without warning'

Rosalind Walker, from Godfrey, Illinois, was left trapped between the bed and wall of her bedroom on March 1 2023 after it “lowered itself without warning”. Two days later on March 3, emergency responders managed to free the 80-year-old and she was taken to hospital.

In a lawsuit brought by her daughter Angela Moan, it says Walker was taken to a rehab center and then brought home into hospice. Moan claims that until her mother passed away on April 3 2023 she “suffered the entire time”.

Her suit is seeking compensation for Walker's suffering and injuries as well as medical bills in excess of $25,000. It alleges that Sleep Number “designed and sold a bed that did not have adequate instructions or cautionary language, alerting Mrs. Walker not to go between the bed and the wall as she could be trapped.”

The company is also accused of having “designed and sold a bed that did not have an adequate audible warning alerting Mrs. Walker it was declining”. It adds that the bed “did not have an appropriate release mechanism which would have allowed Mrs. Walker to free herself”.

A spokesperson for Sleep Number said they would not comment on pending litigation. In January of this year the company had to publicly apologise to an 85-year-old woman who was escorted from one of their stores in Dayton, Ohio.

Helen Dewberry had sought to speak with an in-store manager about a home delivery purchase she had received from the company. She decided to go into a branch, however, Dewberry told the Dayton Daily News that when she appeared at the branch she was tossed a phone and told to call customer service.

She said: “I said 'Sir, I got dressed to come down here to talk to a person, not on the phone again’.” The manager then told her to leave and when she refused he had three police officers remove her. The company said it publicly apologised to Dewberry over the move by the manager with a decision on store personnel pending the outcome of a meeting.