A pair from Florida sues McDonald’s for $15,000 after it claimed their 4-year-old daughter was burned by a chicken nugget in August 2019.
Philana Holmes and Humberto Caraballo Estevez are suing the fast food giant (on behalf of their daughter Olivia) after they bought a box of Completely satisfied Meals from a vending machine in Tamarac, Florida.
The “dangerously hot” nugget allegedly fell out of the box into the girl’s lap. A recording of her screaming was played in court. Her family said she suffered second-degree burns to her leg from the food, which left her “disfigured and scarred.”
“After I remove the nugget from her skin, it disintegrates in my hand” said Holmes. “Her thigh – the upper a part of her thighs – was really, really red. He screams, he screams.”
The family sued McDonald’s and Upchurch Foods, the owner of the franchise where the incident occurred, for inadequate food safety training and negligence.
The defendants argue that a McDonald’s worker mustn’t serve the nuggets at such “unreasonably and dangerously” high temperatures, deeming them “defective, harmful and unfit for human consumption”.
“An affordable, foreseeable intended use is for this box to be utilized by a toddler,” the family’s lawyer, Jordan Redavid, told the court concerning the standard Completely satisfied Meal box. “The law implies a promise made by a company, on this case to a toddler. And if it could be prevented, it’s best to warn him, it’s best to warn someone about it, and if you happen to don’t, you might be responsible.”
McDonald’s issued a press release Guardian of the Sun in response to the lawsuit, stating that the corporate “respectfully disagrees with the plaintiff’s claims.”
Scott Yount, who represents McDonald’s, told the court there was “no negligence” on behalf of his client.
“Mrs. Holmes bought 32 McNuggets chickens that day. Evidence will show that out of 31 of them there was no problem.” he said.
About 30 years ago, in 1992, Stella Liebeck sued McDonald’s for burns she suffered after spilling hot coffee on her knees. She won the case and the jury awarded him $2.7 million in punitive damages.