Florida Family Wins $800K Lawsuit After McDonald’s McNugget Burned Daughter

A Florida family won an $800,000 lawsuit after their 4-year-old daughter was left with second-degree burns outside a McDonald’s location in Tamarac, near Fort Lauderdale.

In 2019, a McDonald’s Chicken McNugget fell on Olivia Caraballo’s leg as her mother, Philana Holmes, was driving away from the drive-thru. The young girl was left with leg burns, according to the case.

Jurors reached a verdict on Wednesday, awarding the family with $400,000 in damages for the past four years and another $400,000 for the future, from the McDonald’s USA and its franchise operator, Upchurch Foods, as reported by the South Florida Sun Sentinel.

“I’m actually just happy that they listened to Olivia’s voice and the jury was able to decide a fair judgment,” Holmes said, thinking the jury reached a fair judgment. “I’m happy with that. I honestly had no expectations, so this is more than fair for me.”

The verdict came shortly after the jury initially decided that the company and franchise owner were held liable for the injury.

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During the testimony, Holmes shared photos of the burn as well as audio clips of Olivia screaming in pain at the time of the incident. She explained that as she was driving away from the drive-thru, she heard her daughters’ scream, pulled over and found the nugget lodged between her thigh and the seatbelt.

“She’s still going to McDonald’s, 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. “She’s not bothered by the injury. This is all the mom.”

The company testified that they followed food safety rules, “requiring McNuggets to be host enough to avoid salmonella poisoning and that their use outside the restaurant was no longer under their control.”

The judge reduced the $2.7 million award to $480,000, which he claimed was fair for McDonald’s “willful, wanton, reckless” and “callous” behavior.