In a crucial judgement, the California Supreme Court ruled that people harmed by drinking contaminated water can legally sue their supplier for failing to deliver. The ruling came in a case involving about 2,500 residents of San Gabriel Valley, who sued industrial polluters and water companies over the alleged contamination of water being provided to them. Many of the plaintiffs claimed that they contracted cancer or other diseases after drinking water polluted by industrial solvents, solid rocket fuel and other chemicals.