Eat, Drink And Be Wary

[July 16th, 2008]

For you troglodytes who don’t regularly check wweek.com, you’ve been missing the occasional online Juicy Suits column, which highlights Portland’s most bizarre and newsworthy lawsuits.

Since the column began nearly a year ago we’ve highlighted dozens of cases. And this week the column vaults into print with three lawsuits centering on the service industry so we can give you a small taste of what’s happening in local courts when it comes to how we eat and drink.

THE PLAINTIFF: Susan Peebles, 51
THE DEFENDANT: McCormick & Schmick’s Restaurant Corp.
THE SUIT: Peebles, a server at Jake’s Famous Crawfish downtown from March 2005 to March 2007, claims she faced on-the-job discrimination because of her gender.

Peebles, from Southwest Portland, alleges management at the landmark restaurant gave her poorer wait stations and less desirable shifts than male servers, denied her priority in seating, regularly called her a “bitch” and fired her for misusing the “à la carte” key on the register, while men were not terminated for the same misuse.

The lawsuit, filed June 11 in U.S. District Court by Portland lawyer Elizabeth Oberlin, seeks unspecified damages from Jake’s Portland-based parent company, McCormick & Schmick’s Restaurant Corp. Spokeswoman Jenny Storer said in an email that the company “strongly believes” the claims have no merit.

THE PLAINTIFF: The family of Gunnar Bror Skeri, 89
THE DEFENDANT: Legacy Health Systems
THE SUIT: Skeri’s family claims he died last year in Legacy Meridian Park Hospital after scalding soup spilled on his face and chest.

The family claims the Gladstone man was admitted to the hospital on June 8, 2007, for a respiratory infection but died the same day from severe burns from the soup. The lawsuit claims the soup was in an unsafe container, that Skeri was not warned it was a burn hazard, and that the family wasn’t informed about the burns in a timely manner.

The lawsuit, filed July 8 in Multnomah County Circuit Court by Portland lawyer John Coletti, seeks $1.5 million. Legacy Health Systems spokeswoman Kathy Gorman declined to comment.

THE PLAINTIFF: Scott Johnson, 42
THE DEFENDANT: Cheers to You
THE SUIT: Johnson, of Southeast Portland, claims he was repeatedly stabbed after managers and bouncers failed to keep control of the barroom at Cheers to You bar, 12131 SE Holgate St.

Johnson says he was at Cheers to You on May 31, 2006, when the bar was advertising discounted beer. His lawsuit says another patron, Edgar Jaramillo-Ramirez, took Johnson’s chair when he got up to play pool and “stood next to and stared at” Johnson for more than 20 minutes.

Johnson complained about the “menacing behavior” but the bouncer did nothing, the lawsuit says. Then Jaramillo-Ramirez left the bar, came back with a knife, and stabbed Johnson multiple times, puncturing his lung and causing other organ damage, the lawsuit says.

The suit, filed May 23 in Multnomah County Circuit Court by Portland lawyer Gregory Leineweber, seeks $22,400 for Johnson’s medical bills plus $350,000 for pain and suffering. A manager at Cheers to You did not return a phone call seeking comment.