Man chipped tooth on bone in McDonald's burger, suit claims

WINFIELD – A Kanawha County man claims a bone found in a McDonald's hamburger resulted in an injury to his tooth.

William W. Mucklow filed the lawsuit Nov. 20 in Putnam Circuit Court against McDonald's Corporation and Macatac Winfield Inc., doing business as McDonald's of Teays Valley.

Mucklow says he was at the Teays Valley McDonald's on Nov. 25, 2005, when he bought food products there.

"The food products contained a hard non-food substance believed to be bone, which plaintiff bit into and which non-food substance and unsafe food product caused severe damage and injury to plaintiff's tooth," the lawsuit, filed by Charleston attorney C. Page Hamrick, states.

The complaint doesn't specify what type of food product the bone was in, but Hamrick said it was a burger.

Mucklow claims Macatac Winfield Inc. was grossly negligent in selling a food product containing a non-food substance and in failing to provide safe food products. He also says the company committed willful and wanton misconduct.

McDonald's Corporation, the complaint states, "supplied, sold and transferred the defective and unsafe food products into the State of West Virginia" and to Macatac Winfield Inc. and, ultimately, to the public and to Mucklow.

Mucklow seeks compensatory damages in amounts to be established, as well as court costs and attorney fees.

The case has been assigned to Circuit Judge O.C. "Hobby" Spaulding.

Putnam Circuit Court case number: 07-C-483