Legal Lessons

Fast-Food Finger Finder Finally Flakes 

Forgive the alliteration, but what a bizarre lawsuit Wendy's was about to face!

Anna Ayala, 39, of Las Vegas, was dining at the Wendy's in San Jose, Calif., on March 22, 2005, when she said she scooped up the inch-and-a-half long fingertip in a mouthful of chili. "Just knowing that there was a human remain in my mouth ... it is disgusting. It is tearing me apart inside," Ayala told ABC's "Good Morning America."

Wendy's did not take this claim lying down. Initially, they put up a $50,000.00 reward (later doubled) to the one who could link up where the finger came from. They checked every employee and supplier and vendor carefully. All had ten fingers, apparently. They looked more closely at Ayala.

Eventually, the woman's story began to crumble.

Much like CSI and other crime shows, there are experts who can tell you remarkable things. For one, they can tell if a finger has been cooking at 170 degrees for three hours or not. This one apparently had not.

By the way, Ayala was a frequent flyer on the legal scene. She has filed claims against several corporations, including a former employer and General Motors, though it is unclear from court records whether she received any money.

Finally, she has been placed where she belongs, in jail. If convicted on all three counts, Ayala faces nearly 10 years in prison and may have to reimburse Wendy's, which claims to have lost at least $2.5 million in sales and laid off dozens of employees in northern California because of the incident.

The media has talked of the impact on Wendy's, which as been very significant indeed. However, those people who bring justifiable claims are the ones that will be most harmed in the long term by this type of fraud, because it breeds the mis-perception that most lawsuits are frivolous. Some are. Most are not. This one was beyond that, it was fraud.

But, be careful not to throw out the baby with the bath water when we talk about lawsuits.