In Broward County, Florida, a jury just awarded the family a hefty sum of $800,000 in damages. The jury ruled that both the fast food chain and the franchise owner were at fault for not providing any warning or guidance on how to avoid injuries from the hot McNuggets they served at the drive-thru in Tamarac, Florida, back in 2019.
From Yahoo News:
Lawyers for the family of Olivia Caraballo — who is 8 but was 4 at the time — sought $15 million in damages, according to CBS News. The jury took less than two hours to reach their verdict, per the outlet. They assigned $400,000 in damages for the previous four years and an additional $400,000 for the future from McDonald’s USA and Upchurch Foods, its franchise operator.
"I'm actually just happy that they listened to Olivia's voice and the jury was able to decide a fair judgment," Olivia's mother, Philana Holmes, told reporters outside the courtroom, per CBS News. "I'm happy with that. I honestly had no expectations, so this is more than fair for me."
On Tuesday, Holmes testified that Olivia refers to the scar as her “nugget” and she is obsessed with having it removed, according to the outlet.
Lawyers for McDonald’s said that the child was no longer in pain after the wound healed, which happened in roughly three weeks, CBS News reports. They argued that the girl’s mother was more troubled by the scar itself and suggested to jurors that $156,000 was appropriate to cover past and future damages.
"She's still going to McDonalds, she still asks to go to McDonald's, she's still driving through the drive-thru with her mom, getting chicken nuggets," defense attorney Jennifer Miller said in her closing argument Wednesday, per CBS News. "She's not bothered by the injury. This is all the mom."
I'm sorry, but this is just insane.
Did the mother also neglect to check the temperature of the food before giving it to her daughter? If so, shouldn't she also be at fault for negligence?
And seriously, how can a scar from a burn be considered a disfigurement? It's clear that the child isn't affected enough by her experience to stop going to McDonald's and enjoying chicken nuggets.
This mom isn't stupid; she knew exactly how to take advantage of the justice system and use it for her own personal payday. Unfortunately, this kind of thing happens all too often in this country.
