A California widower claimed McDonald\u2019s workers watched and made no effort to save his wife\u2019s life as she was fatally attacked by a \u201cvagrant\u201d in the drive-thru.<\/p>\n
Jose Juan Rangel filed a lawsuit against the fast-food chain and two franchise holders in Los Angeles Superior Court on Jan. 8, nearly two years after his wife, Maria Vargas Luna, was attacked at a McDonald\u2019s in the Boyle Heights neighborhood of East Los Angeles.<\/p>\n
Rangel, 75, and Luna, 58, were stuck in their car at the Golden Arches drive-thru when a homeless man, later identified as Charles Cornelius Green Jr., approached them in March 2024, according to the lawsuit obtained by Law & Crime<\/a>.<\/p>\n Maria Vargas Luna was left brain-dead and later died after she was attacked at a McDonald\u2019s in East Los Angeles. Gofundme<\/p>\n Green had been roaming the drive-thru area \u201cfor at least ten minutes,\u201d panhandling customers for money before he approached the couple, Rangel\u2019s attorney, Ali R. Kazempour, claimed.<\/p>\n Green allegedly launched himself at Rangel and struck him repeatedly in the face through the open driver-side window.<\/p>\n Luna leapt from the car to help her husband, but Green shoved her to the ground, causing her head to strike the asphalt and suffer catastrophic injuries that led to permanent brain damage, according to the suit. <\/p>\n The complaint alleged that McDonald\u2019s employees \u201cnever called law enforcement or requested emergency assistance\u201d during the attack despite \u201cvisible warning signs\u201d leading up to the physical altercation that required action.<\/p>\n \u201cDefendants\u2019 employees had sufficient time to observe Green\u2019s conduct, recognize the danger, and intervene before the assault,\u201d the lawsuit stated.<\/p>\n Her husband, Jose Juan Rangel, who was also injured in the attack, filed a lawsuit against the fast-food chain and two franchise holders in Los Angeles Superior Court on Jan. 8. Rangel Family<\/p>\n Police arrived after Rangel was injured and his wife was lying unconscious on the ground.<\/p>\n Luna was transported to the hospital, where she was placed on life support for several months before she died from her injuries. <\/p>\n Green was allegedly a \u201cknown vagrant\u201d who frequently loitered at the McDonald\u2019s, and employees were aware that his presence created \u201cunpredictable and alarming encounters\u201d for customers, according to the suit.<\/p>\n \u201cDefendants\u2019 failure to employ security personnel or implement safety measures allowed Green to remain on the property and created the conditions that led to the attack.\u201d<\/p>\n Luna was placed on life support for several months before she died from her injuries. Gofundme<\/p>\n Rangel\u2019s lawsuit alleges that workers ignored obvious danger, failed to monitor customer areas, and acted negligently, asserting that they still had a duty to \u201crespond reasonably\u201d once Green became threatening, even without a security guard.<\/p>\n The complaint also alleges the McDonald\u2019s location had become a magnet for crime, claiming the Los Angeles Police Department responded to the restaurant 132 times for violent incidents and criminal activity between 2020 and March 2024.<\/p>\n Police allegedly handled 90 criminal or violent incidents at the location, with at least 70 of the calls involving assaults, batteries, or disturbances.<\/p>\n \u201cThese repeated events placed defendants on actual and constructive notice that violence, trespassing, and loitering created persistent and dangerous conditions on the property,\u201d the complaint said.<\/p>\n The Los Angeles Police Department responded to the restaurant 132 times for violent incidents and criminal activity between 2020 and March 2024, the lawsuit claims. KABC<\/p>\n \u201cDespite the history of similar incidents, the visible warning signs immediately before the assault, and the attack unfolding in plain view for several minutes, defendants chose not to take any action to protect (Rangel) or his now-deceased wife.\u201d<\/p>\n Green initially faced felony and misdemeanor battery charges, but prosecutors dropped the felony after determining Luna\u2019s fall was accidental, Fox 11<\/a> reported. <\/p>\n Green was later cut loose on his own recognizance, and the case remains unresolved.<\/p>\n The couple\u2019s daughter, Veronica Rangel, criticized then\u2013Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gasc\u00f3n, accusing him of \u201cbrushing off\u201d the crime against her parents.<\/p>\n