A tragic incident at a McDonald’s drive-thru in East Los Angeles has left a widower, Jose Juan Rangel, filing a lawsuit against the fast-food chain and two franchise holders. The lawsuit claims that McDonald’s workers did nothing to save Rangel’s wife, Maria Vargas Luna, as she was fatally attacked by a homeless man in March 2024.
According to the lawsuit, Rangel and Luna were in their car at the drive-thru when a homeless man, later identified as Charles Cornelius Green Jr., approached them. Green had been panhandling customers for money before he attacked the couple. He struck Rangel repeatedly in the face through the open window and then shoved Luna to the ground, causing her to suffer catastrophic injuries that led to permanent brain damage.
Despite the visible warning signs leading up to the attack, the lawsuit alleges that McDonald’s employees did not call law enforcement or request emergency assistance. The employees had enough time to intervene and prevent the assault, but they failed to do so.
Luna was transported to the hospital and placed on life support for several months before she tragically passed away. The lawsuit claims that Green was a known vagrant who frequently loitered at the McDonald’s, creating unpredictable and alarming encounters for customers. The lack of security personnel and safety measures at the location allowed Green to remain on the property and led to the tragic attack.
The lawsuit further alleges that the McDonald’s location had become a magnet for crime, with the Los Angeles Police Department responding to the restaurant 132 times for violent incidents and criminal activity between 2020 and March 2024. Despite this history of incidents, the employees failed to take any action to protect Rangel and Luna during the attack.
Green initially faced felony and misdemeanor battery charges, but the felony charge was dropped after prosecutors determined Luna’s fall was accidental. Green was released on his own recognizance, and the case remains unresolved. The couple’s daughter, Veronica Rangel, criticized the Los Angeles County District Attorney for brushing off the crime against her parents and called for justice.
The tragic incident at the McDonald’s drive-thru has left a family grieving and seeking justice for the senseless attack that took Maria Vargas Luna’s life. The lawsuit seeks accountability for the negligence of the McDonald’s employees and the dangerous conditions that allowed the attack to occur.
