Florida resident Betty Gaitor filed a complaint against Walmart, Inc. and Tyson Foods, Inc. on Tuesday in the Broward County, Florida 17th Judicial Court alleging that she found pieces of metal in the prepared chicken she purchased at her local Walmart.
Gaitor purchased ready-to-eat chicken wings from Walmart on February 12, 2019, and found a piece of metal as she bit into the chicken. The woman is seeking $30,000 in damages, including interest and other costs, to account for injuries she received. She claims that because of the companies’ negligence she “suffered serious bodily injury and resulting pain and suffering, disability, disfigurement, mental anguish, significant and permanent scarring, loss of capacity for the enjoyment of life, expenses of hospitalization, medical and nursing care and treatment, loss of earnings, and loss of ability to earn money.”
She alleged that Walmart and Tyson manufactured or prepared the wings which included the piece of metal and broke their “duty to sell safe food”
The plaintiff alleged that Walmart allowed a piece of metal in chicken wings it sold, which the complaint calls a hazard and a “dangerous condition.” She said the grocery store did not warn of the hazard, properly inspect the chicken, institute appropriate procedures, train employees to identify hazards, or “maintain its food preparation devices.” She also said Walmart was negligent because the company continued to do business with Tyson “which has a known reputation for selling dangerous chicken products with metal.”
The complaint also accuses Tyson of allowing a piece of metal into the chicken, which the plaintiff asserts is dangerous, and failure to warn and train employees, as well as failure to “implement appropriate policies and procedures with reference to recognizing and addressing dangerous and/or hazardous conditions in food sold.”
The complaint includes counts of negligence against each of the defendants and a request from Gaitor for damages and a trial by jury. The plaintiff is represented by Porcaro Law Group.
