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Oklahoma woman sues Arby's after manager allegedly spat in food, causing herpes infection
An Oklahoma woman sued Arby's after a former manager allegedly spat in her food, causing an HSV-1 infection. The family seeks damages in the lawsuit.
An Oklahoma woman, Jennica Church, and her family have filed a lawsuit against Arby's, claiming that a former restaurant manager spat in her food and infected her with oral herpes. The incident allegedly happened in late March at an Arby's restaurant in Broken Bow, Oklahoma. Church said she had worked a long night and stopped at the restaurant's drive-thru to buy food for herself and her family.
Arby's manager spat in food: All on bombshell claim
The lawsuit alleges that Hendricks intentionally spat on the meat or sandwich ingredients while preparing Church's order. The complaint further claims Hendricks knew she had Herpes Simplex Virus Type 1 (HSV-1), also known as oral herpes, when she allegedly spat on the food. The lawsuit also alleges that Hendricks had an active herpes outbreak with visible sores at the time and knew the virus could spread through saliva.
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Soon after eating the food, Church said she developed unusual sores around her mouth that she had never experienced before. She later visited a doctor and tested positive for HSV-1, the lawsuit claims. The lawsuit claims surveillance video from the restaurant shows Hendricks preparing the food, spitting on the meat or sandwich ingredients, and then serving the contaminated sandwiches, as noted by People report.
Oklahoma woman's lawsuit alleges cover-up
The lawsuit also alleges that when Church confronted the restaurant, Arby's staff tried to hide the truth about the surveillance footage. Church's family claims restaurant staff tried to settle the matter by offering them free sandwiches as compensation.
The lawsuit says Church's grandmother-in-law was also offered only $5 as compensation for the incident, as stated by People report. The family says the alleged incident has caused them severe emotional stress and anxiety. According to the lawsuit, the infection has also changed the way family members interact with each other because they now worry about spreading the virus.
Church's grandmother-in-law told KJRH that she is now afraid to kiss her husband because he also ate the food and may have the virus even if he has no symptoms. The family's lawyer, Will Blocker, criticised the restaurant staff, saying employees knew what had happened but did not stop the food from being served. Blocker also suggested the problem could go beyond the Broken Bow restaurant and said his legal team would investigate whether it reflected a wider issue involving Flynn Restaurant Group, which owns hundreds of Arby's locations.
The Church family is seeking compensatory damages, including payment for medical expenses, physical pain and suffering, and other losses. Amanda Hendricks has been charged with felony poisoning of food with intent to injure, according to KJRH, citing a court affidavit. It was not immediately clear whether Hendricks has a lawyer representing her.
