Panera Bread has reportedly reached a legal settlement with the family of college student Sarah Katz, who died after she consumed a highly caffeinated “Charged Lemonade” from the restaurant in 2022.
Katz’s family filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the fast-food chain on Oct. 23, 2023, in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas.
They alleged Panera’s “unreasonably dangerous” energy drink was not properly labelled and did not make customers aware of the beverage’s high concentration of caffeine.
One large portion of Panera’s Charged Lemonade contained 390 milligrams of caffeine — more caffeine than a can of Red Bull (77.4 mg) and a can of Monster Energy (160 mg) combined.
Katz, a 21-year-old Ivy League student, went into cardiac arrest in September 2022 after drinking the Charged Lemonade in a Panera restaurant alongside friends. She was rushed to a hospital where she had another cardiac arrest and was pronounced dead, the lawsuit details.
Her family said Katz avoided drinking energy drinks because she was diagnosed with long QT syndrome, a chronic heart condition that can cause fast, chaotic heartbeats.
NBC News was first to report of the settlement, though the legal agreement was later confirmed by Elizabeth Crawford of the law firm Kline & Specter, PC, which represents the Katz family.
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The conditions of the actual settlement have not yet been publicly revealed.
At the time of Katz’s death, Panera said it was “saddened” by the news, and sent well wishes to her family.
“At Panera, we strongly believe in transparency around our ingredients. We will work quickly to thoroughly investigate this matter,” a spokesperson said.
The case was scheduled to go to trial this month.
Panera has not commented publicly on the settlement.
Katz is not the only person to die as a result of consuming Panera’s Charged Lemonade, and at least two other lawsuits against the soup and sandwich chain are still pending.
In December 2023, Panera was again sued over their Charged Lemonade drinks when 46-year-old Dennis Brown of Florida suffered a cardiac arrest after consuming the beverage.
In a wrongful death lawsuit filed by Brown’s family, they said Brown was diagnosed with a chromosomal deficiency disorder, ADHD and high blood pressure. He allegedly twice refilled his cup over the course of an hour and a half before he collapsed on his walk home from the restaurant. The lawsuit claims that Brown avoided energy drinks because of his high blood pressure.
A third lawsuit was filed against Panera in January after 28-year-old Lauren Skerritt of Rhode Island said she suffered “permanent” heart issues as a result of drinking two-and-a-half Charged Lemonades. She was not known to have underlying health issues, the lawsuit alleged.
Panera has denied culpability in all of the lawsuits, but did add warning labels to its menu after Katz’ death.
In May 2024, a spokesperson for Panera Bread said the restaurant would remove its Charged Lemonades from its Canadian locations, all of which exist in Ontario. The beverages were removed as part of a “menu transformation,” the spokesperson said, making no mention of the ongoing litigation.
The fast-food chain first unveiled the fruity Charged Lemonades in the spring of 2022.
Health Canada recommends adults over 18 years old consume no more than 400 mg of caffeine per day. A regular 8 oz. cup of brewed coffee has, on average, 135 mg of caffeine.
— With files from Global News’ Kathryn Mannie
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