Woman Sues McDonald's After Worker Spit On Her
UPDATED 12/09/10 1:41 p.m.
CHICAGO (CBS) -- A woman says McDonald's owes her $300,000 in damages, after a drive-thru worker spit on her.
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Sarah Thienes filed the lawsuit Wednesday in Cook County Circuit Court.
Thienes claims she was a passenger in a taxi about 3:50 a.m. on Dec. 13, 2009, when she tried to order a cheeseburger through the drive-through lane of the restaurant at 23 N. Western Ave.
An employee allegedly told her in an "aggressive, unfriendly tone" that only breakfast menu items were available and that Thiesen couldn't have a cheeseburger, according to the suit.
When Thienes tried to order a ham, egg and cheese bagel, the employee "yelled" that bagel sandwiches didn't come with ham, so the woman ordered a bagel sandwich with bacon instead, the suit said.
The employee allegedly "continued to scream" at the woman through the drive-through speaker system and, when the taxi approached the pick-up window, the worker "stuck her head out of the window and spit directly onto [Thienes'] face," according to the suit.
A statement issued Thursday McDonald's frachisee Ron Lofton said, "While we are aware of this claim, we have not been served with a lawsuit. As always, we investigate claims to gather the facts, and take action, as appropriate.
"We strongly caution anyone from jumping to conclusions, without having the facts. At this time these are just allegations. Because this is an ongoing legal matter, it would be inappropriate to further comment or speculate at this time."
A McDonald's manager said the whole incident was caught on surveillance video, according to the lawsuit. Thienes filed a police report about the spitting incident the next day, the suit said.
The three-count suit claims intentional infliction of emotional distress, battery and negligence. It seeks at least $300,000 in damages.
The Sun-Times Media Wire contributed to this report.
