American bakery chain Panera Bread has been hit with another lawsuit alleging another death due to consumption of its “Charged Lemonade” energy drink. This is the second death and subsequent that has been attributed to the suspected fatal drink.
The parents of 21-year-old Sarah Katz began seeking legal action against the bakery chain after their daughter had suffered a cardiac arrest after consuming the caffeinated beverage in September of last year. The company later gave the drink a warning label, advising potential patrons of its caffeine content, as previously reported by The Dallas Express.
A new lawsuit has now been filed against the company after another person died after allegedly consuming the drink.
This new lawsuit claims that 46-year-old Dennis Brown, a regular for the restaurant, had ordered this drink, refilled it twice over about 90 minutes, and died of a cardiac arrest on his way home, according to NBC NEWS. Brown’s mother, brother, and sister filed this lawsuit only months after the first lawsuit with Katz was filed.
The lawsuit claims that Brown also suffered from several afflictions, including an intellectual disability, an unknown chromosomal deficiency disorder, a developmental delay, and high blood pressure.
It is unknown at this time if Brown was aware of the drink’s caffeine content. However, the lawsuit claims the drink was available “side-by-side” with caffeinated and non-caffeinated beverages in the self-service section.
The company has since issued a statement expressing their condolences to the family but denied that the drink had been the cause of Brown’s death.
“Based on our investigation we believe his unfortunate passing was not caused by one of the company’s products,” said Panera, according to NBC. “We view this lawsuit, which was filed by the same law firm as a previous claim, to be equally without merit. Panera stands firmly by the safety of our products.”
Elizabeth Crawford, a lawyer from the Philadelphia-based law firm Kline & Specter, PC., representing both the Brown and Katz families, told NBC that the Browns were filing this lawsuit to warn others of the alleged danger this drink poses and to prevent another death.
“This is a vulnerable population that I think the community at large should help protect. And I feel like Panera failed to do that for Dennis,” said Crawford, per NBC. “Dennis’ family, just like the Katz family, hopes that this message gets out to prevent this from happening to another Dennis.”
