PENSACOLA, Fla. -- An Army veteran was awarded $77.5 million on Friday after a Pensacola jury found that defective earplugs damaged his hearing.

James Beal served in the U.S. Army from 2005 to 2009 and in the Army Reserves until 2011. During his service, he used CAEv2 earplugs, which at the time he had not known were defective.

Beal spent the majority of his deployment in Iraq identifying and detonating IEDs.

A jury determined that while Beal was serving his country that the earplugs did not function for the purpose of protecting his hearing.

Beal now suffers from bilateral tinnitus and noise-induced hearing loss.

“Jay Beal is a deserving soldier, like so many others, who is facing a life of hearing loss and tinnitus because 3M put money and market share over soldiers’ safety," Brad Bradford, attorney said. "We are glad the jurors saw through 3M’s spin trying to justify conduct that cannot be justified.”