Florida Man Dies After Drinking Panera Bread’s Heavily Caffeinated Beverage, Lawsuit Claims
A Florida man died after consuming three servings of Panera Bread’s Charged Lemonade, according to a lawsuit filed against the company. This comes as the second lawsuit linking the beverage to a death.
Dennis Brown, 46, died in October after suffering a “cardiac event” while walking home from a Panera Bread in Fleming Island, Fla., as stated in the wrongful-death lawsuit filed by Mr. Brown’s family. The lawsuit claims that the Charged Lemonade has more caffeine in its large size than a 12-ounce Red Bull and a 16-ounce Monster Energy Drink combined.
The lawsuit also alleges that Panera “knew or should have known” that the drink could injure certain individuals, including children, pregnant and breastfeeding women, and people sensitive to caffeine.
After an initial lawsuit, Panera claimed to have enhanced its existing caffeine disclosure. In a statement, Panera said it “stands firmly by the safety of our products” and believes that Mr. Brown’s passing was not a result of their product.
In October, the parents of a college student with a heart condition who died in September 2022 after drinking a Charged Lemonade also filed a lawsuit against Panera. The lawsuit stated that the student, Sarah Katz, 21, drank the beverage likely believing it had a safe amount of caffeine.
According to Panera’s website, a regular Charged Lemonade has 260 milligrams of caffeine, and the large size has 390 milligrams. The Food and Drug Administration states that most “healthy adults” can safely consume up to 400 milligrams of caffeine per day.
The lawsuit filed in Delaware said that Mr. Brown had high blood pressure, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and a chromosomal disorder, among other conditions. He was an advocate for community safety and inclusion for people with disabilities.
It is stated in the complaint that Mr. Brown would go to Panera up to three times a week after his shifts at Publix supermarket where he worked for nearly 17 years. On the day of his death, he ordered the Charged Lemonade and had two refills before walking home, where he suffered a cardiac event and was found unresponsive on a sidewalk.
The complaint said that the Charged Lemonade “was offered side-by-side” with drinks with no caffeine or less caffeine and that it was not advertised as an energy drink and did not have any warnings.
Mr. Brown’s cause of death was determined to be “cardiac arrest due to hypertensive disease.”According to Elizabeth Crawford, a lawyer representing Mr. Brown’s family, they hope their message gets out to prevent such incidents from happening again.