McDonald's Corp. could be heading for trouble if the burger giant allows a Kentucky jury to decide whether it is responsible for the sexual humiliation inflicted on a former employee as a result of a strip-search hoax.

An assistant manager at a McDonald's in Mt. Washington, Ky., detained Louise Ogborn, then 18, in her office for 3-1/2 hours in April 2004 after a caller masquerading as a police officer said an employee had stolen a purse from a customer. Following the caller's instructions, the manager's fiancé had Ogborn do calisthenics in the nude and perform oral sex on him.

Similar cases have settled before trial (see table below), but McDonald's has so far played hardball with Ogborn, who is seeking more than $200 million in damages from the company for negligence, assault and sexual harassment. Jury selection began Sept. 10 in Bullitt County Circuit Court.

In a press release, McDonald's claimed Ogborn's injuries, “if any,” were caused by her own failure to realize the caller was not a police officer. During her deposition, a defense attorney suggested she was free to walk out of Donna Summers' office at any time -– even though she was naked and Summers' fiancé beat her for not complying with his demands.

But the entire incident was captured on DVD by a surveillance camera, giving the plaintiff incontrovertible evidence of the psychological terror she suffered. “I was scared for my life,” she testified in her deposition.

Before Ogborn's ordeal, moreover, 44 other McDonald's restaurants around the country had received strip-search hoax calls, allegedly from the same person. Yet according to their depositions, neither Summers nor Kim Dockery, another assistant manager, had heard anything about them.

Last week, Senior Judge Tom McDonald (no relation) ordered the company to disclose all information about those hoaxes and sanctioned the company for failing to disclose four other incidents. As part of the sanctions, McDonald's must give Ogborn material that normally would be protected by the attorney-client privilege.

“It is inconceivable to the court how somebody could not know of cases in which they were sued,” the judge said.

Ogborn's therapist has said she has suffered from panic attacks, severe insomnia and nightmares. With the discovery sanctions, an extremely sympathetic plaintiff, and the DVD recording, McDonald's could be risking a severe judgment by going to trial rather than settling the case.

The jury will also hear Summers' $50 million counterclaim against McDonald's.

By Matthew Heller
9/10/07