Wendy's franchise sued for $20 million after girl, 11, left 'critically ill' by E. coli

The family of an 11-year-old girl filed a $20 million lawsuit against the operator of a Wendy’s franchise in Michigan.

The lawsuit, which is around £15.4 million in UK currency, alleges that Aspen Lamfers fell critically ill, developing complications from an E. coli infection, after eating at the restaurant.

In August 2022, Aspen and her family went to the Wendy’s in question in Jenison, MI, after a softball practice session.

The lawsuit, filed in April 2024 against the Meritage Hospitality Group that runs the franchise, said that the 11-year-old ate a ‘Biggie Bag’ meal, which included a hamburger, chicken nuggets and fries.

It continued to say that, three days after eating the meal, Aspen began to feel ill, with nausea, stomach pain, fever, and diarrhea

When her mother saw blood in Aspen’s stool, she rushed her to hospital for initial treatment.

The lawsuit claims that she then returned to hospital a couple of days later after her condition deteriorated.

On August 11th, the 11-year-old was transferred to a different hospital and placed on dialysis in the paediatric intensive care unit.

According to the lawsuit, Aspen was treated for a complication stemming from a STEC (Shiga toxin producing E. coli) infection; hemolytic uremic syndrome.

The girl was then diagnosed with stage three kidney failure, according to the court documents, and she also suffered facial drooping, weakness down her body’s left side, and persistent numbness.

Aspen suffered permanent brain damage and renal failure, became non-verbal for a time, and even suffered paralysis.

Before Aspen lost her speech, she said: “Why am I so sick? Why? And it’s so bad!”

By September 9th 2022, she was discharged with additional permanent impairments: diabetes, hypertension and loss of strength, the documents claim.

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The lawsuit detailed Aspen’s physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech and language therapy, nursing care, and counselling.

"Aspen’s life has been forever changed because of this blatant disregard for the health and safety of the public," family attorney, Tom Worsfold, told McClatchy News.

“When Aspen took the State M-Step assessment in fifth grade in the spring of 2022, she scored in the 61st percentile for reading with a 6th grade reading level, and she scored in the 70th percentile for math,” the lawsuit stated.

"When Aspen took the State M-Step assessment after her STEC infection in the spring of 2023, she scored in the 26th percentile in reading with a 4th grade reading level, and she scored in the 9th percentile for math.”

The lawsuit also includes evidence that, on July 27th 2022, the Wendy’s franchise in question underwent an inspection that found a series of health code violations, with those including: “moldy strawberries, spoiled tomatoes, and day-old chili that had been left out”.

A subsequent inspection found further violations, including shortfalls in hand-washing practices and raw beef found stored at potentially dangerous temperatures.

Since those inspections, the franchise has changed management and a follow-up found the health and safety practices at the restaurant had significantly improved.

As of March 2025, there have been no public updates on the lawsuit’s progress, and Aspen’s ongoing condition has not been reported.

Meritage Hospitality Group and Wendy's have been approached for comment.