Newly released video from a 2021 incident shows a Jack in the Box worker opening fire at a family’s car after an argument over curly fries, WFLA-TV reported.
What are the details?
Anthony Ramos of Miami, his then-pregnant wife, Jeraldin Ospina, and their 6-year-old daughter pulled up to a Houston Jack in the Box in March 2021 and ordered food, the station said.
After an order of curly fries didn’t come through, Ramos asked employee Alonniea Ford about it, but she “refused to fulfill the order” which had already been paid for, WFLA said.
When asked to speak with a manager, Ford “began cursing at [the family] and yelling at them to ‘get the [expletive] outta here!’” the station said, citing court documents.
Ford hurled packets of ketchup, ice, and other items at the family’s car amid an argument, WFLA said, adding that Ford soon retrieved a gun and fired it at the family’s car as it sped away.
What happened next?
According to a WFLA story published last year, a lawsuit Ramos and Ospina filed against Jack in the Box and Ford indicated Ford called a man named Kevin Theriot to “come and retrieve the gun used to shoot,” and Ford and Theriot were arrested at the scene.
Ford was charged with deadly conduct with a firearm, which was reduced to a felony offense of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, the station said, citing Texas court system records. Ford pleaded guilty in June 2022, WFLA said.
An attorney for the plaintiffs said Ford was given deferred adjudication and sentenced for a year of probation due to her guilty plea, the station said, adding that a second attorney for the plaintiffs said Ford served six days in jail.
The plaintiffs’ attorney also said Ford had been convicted of making terroristic threats in 2012 and noted that “Jack-In-The-Box needs to do background check[s] on employees so as not to expose their customers to someone who would attempt to kill them,” WFLA reported.
The lawsuit, filed in September 2022, requested damages for past and future physical and mental pain and suffering, as well as for past and future medical bills, the station said, citing court documents. The suit also sought damages for lost wages and loss of earning capacity totaling not more than $1 million, as well as the changes to business policy, WFLA said.
According to KTRK-TV, Jack in the Box in its original response denied all allegations and stated the restaurant has “no control” over and “is not legally responsible” for third parties such as Ford. KTRK said a Jack in the Box attorney didn’t immediately respond to the station’s request for comment.
KTRK also reported that the lawsuit seeks at least $250,000 in damages and that the drive-thru video emerged as a result of discovery.
Citing the Harris County District Clerk’s Office, MySanAntonio.com reported that the case is set to go to trial in Houston in November.
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