OFF:Re:McDonalds Incident (was:READ THIS)

[Ted O. Jackson]

> On Mon, 11 Mar 1996, M Holmes wrote:
> > IMHO, incidents like the idiot who sued MacDonalds over her spilling hot
> > coffee over herself while driving with it in her lap indicate that the
> > US has of late become Very Unclear On The Concept of personal
> > responsibility.
>
> Ah, now's my chance to jump in...
> Here's what *really* happened with the McDonald's suit:
> 1) The lady did in fact get 3rd degree burns.  (When you're stuck in the
> car with your seatbelt on and 140-150 degree liquid in your lap, it will
> definitely burn.)


Now my turn!

I saw a story about the MacDo coffee incident on a '60 mins' type
show.  They showed photos of her burns, and they looked gruesome.
Still, when you buy a cup of coffee, youu should expect it to be hot!
I don't think people should be driving around with hot coffee in
their hands.  What if you have to make an emergency move, brake hard
etc?  [I know, I know!  I drink coffee in the car all the time!]  If
you're going to choose to drive around with hot coffee, you have to
take your chances along with the risk.  I expect if she'd put the
coffee in a cup holder 'til she got to where she was going, she'd
have been okay.  The law should take into account personal
responsibility.  I don't think MacDo is responsible for her 'misuse'
of a cup of hot coffee...


> 2) She originally did not sue for the millions that she received, but
> something more like the medical costs (however much they were) plus maybe
> $10,000 more for the trauma or what not.
>

I don't know about that, but the above news show said that the
original judgement was greatly reduced, and MacDo was appealing, etc.
 I don't know that the crone ever got a nickel for her troubles.

> 3) The Courtroom Scene (with paraphrases, of course):
> JUDGE/PROSECUTOR: Mr. McDonald's Representative, your coffee is clearly
> hot enough to give this kind of injury to a person.  Why don't you simply
> lower the temperature of your coffee?
>
> McD'S REP: Your honor, we make $30 million every hour/day [whatever he
> said... McD's is a big chain] on our coffee alone because it is the
> hottest coffee anyone can get.  Any customer can come to McDonald's on
> his way to work, get his coffee, drive in rush hour traffic, go to a top
> floor office, get set up and then drink his coffee, and it will still be
> hot.  The other chains cannot say the same.  That is why we refuse to
> lower the temperature of our coffee.
>
But I tell ya, if you think MacDo coffee is hot, try Dunkin' Donuts!
If the heat doesn't get you, the abnormally high caffeine content
will!


> [later]
> JUDGE'S DECISION:  I award the victim an amount equal to the profit in
> coffee sales that McDonald's generates in one hour.
>

Again, I believe the judgement will ultimately be a lot smaller than
we expected...

theo
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