An Oklahoma woman has filed a lawsuit against Arby’s and a former restaurant manager after alleging the employee intentionally spat into her food while experiencing an active oral herpes outbreak, resulting in the customer contracting the virus.
The lawsuit, filed on June 16 in McCurtain County, centers on an incident that allegedly occurred in late March at an Arby’s restaurant in Broken Bow, Oklahoma.
According to the civil complaint, Amanda Hendricks, 38, was the manager on duty when Jennica Church visited the drive-thru after finishing a late bartending shift. Church said the wait for her order seemed unusually long.
“I thought they were mad at me because it was about to close,” Church told KJRH.
Surveillance Video Allegedly Shows Food Contamination
The lawsuit alleges Hendricks “intentionally and deliberately” spat onto sandwich ingredients while preparing Church’s order. Court documents claim Hendricks knew she had an active Herpes Simplex Virus Type 1 (HSV-1) outbreak and understood the virus could be transmitted through saliva.
Investigators with the Broken Bow Police Department later reviewed surveillance footage from the restaurant. According to an arrest affidavit, officers said the video showed Hendricks spitting into the food before it was served to the customer.
Church told local media that she later learned about the alleged incident from community members in the small town, who claimed Hendricks had been bragging about spitting in the sandwiches. Church said her daughter also heard the allegations from others.
Customer Says She Later Tested Positive for Oral Herpes
After taking the food home, Church said she ate one sandwich while sharing the remaining food with several family members, including her father-in-law and her grandmother-in-law, who was receiving hospice care.
According to the lawsuit, Church soon developed a cold sore on her lip and later tested positive for HSV-1, commonly known as oral herpes. The complaint alleges that the diagnosis followed the restaurant incident and that the virus was transmitted through contaminated food.
The lawsuit also states that Church’s family has experienced significant emotional distress over concerns about spreading the virus to one another.
“My son was sitting at my table, eating breakfast and he wanted a kiss, and he could not get one,” Church’s mother-in-law, Patricia Dollarhite, told KJRH. “I don’t want to kiss my husband. He ate the food!”
Criminal Charges Filed
Hendricks was arrested and booked into the McCurtain County Jail. She has been charged with felony poisoning of food with intent to injure.
An arraignment was scheduled following her arrest. It was not immediately clear whether she had retained legal representation.
Civil Lawsuit Targets Multiple Defendants
In addition to Hendricks, Church’s lawsuit names Arby’s and affiliated restaurant operators as defendants. The complaint alleges that restaurant employees who witnessed the incident failed to intervene or prevent the contaminated food from being served. It also claims the family was initially offered free sandwiches and a small monetary payment after reporting the incident.
Church’s attorney, Will Blocker, argued that the allegations raise broader concerns about restaurant oversight.
“They let it go all the way out the door, and my client now has a communicable disease,” Blocker told KJRH. “That has to be a culture deeper than Arby’s in Broken Bow.”
The family is seeking compensatory damages for medical expenses, pain and suffering, emotional distress, and other losses.
Arby’s Has Not Publicly Responded
As of publication, neither Arby’s nor the defendants named in the lawsuit had publicly responded in court to the allegations.
The criminal case and civil lawsuit remain ongoing. The allegations contained in the lawsuit have not yet been proven in court.
