JENNIFER SINCO KELLEHER
Associated Press
HONOLULU (AP) — A federal magistrate judge says a retired soldier suing Burger King for swallowing needles in a sandwich should pay nearly $8,500 in attorneys’ fees and costs to the defendants for not showing up at a settlement conference.
Burger King asked for sanctions against Clark Bartholomew because he didn’t attend last month’s conference in Honolulu.
The former Army sergeant’s lawsuit says he was injured in 2010 when he bit into a Triple Stacker from a Burger King on a Hawaii base. He now lives in Chantilly, Virginia and says he didn’t attend because he couldn’t take time off from a new job.
The ruling issued this week is subject to final approval by the presiding judge in the case.
Bartholomew’s attorney Paul Saccoccio calls the ruling harsh and plans to appeal.
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