Left inset: Jose Juan Rangel and Maria Vargas Luna (KCAL/YouTube). Right inset: Maria Vargas Luna in the hospital following the attack at McDonald’s (GoFundMe). Background: Surveillance footage showing the alleged “vagrant” attack on Maria Vargas Luna that left her brain dead and led to her death (KTTV/YouTube).
In California, McDonald’s employees witnessed a tragic incident unfold as a “vagrant” fatally attacked a couple at the drive-thru. Despite observing the scene for over ten minutes, staff neither contacted emergency services nor intervened, according to a lawsuit.
The lawsuit, filed by Jose Juan Rangel in Los Angeles Superior Court, asserts that workers watched the assault on his wife, 58-year-old Maria Vargas Luna, from both the drive-thru window and security footage, yet failed to call 911 or initiate any emergency measures.
Rangel accuses the McDonald’s staff of contributing to the tragedy through their “total inaction” given the apparent danger, as described in the legal filing.
The suit names McDonald’s Corporation and two franchise owners, alleging that employees at the restaurant located at 245 North Soto Street in Los Angeles allowed Charles Cornelius Green Jr., the alleged assailant, to loiter around the drive-thru area. He reportedly solicited money and approached vehicles before attacking Rangel and Luna on March 9, 2024.
The lawsuit claims that despite clear signs of potential danger, the defendants did nothing to protect their customers. It describes how Green suddenly lunged at Rangel, assaulting him through the open driver-side window.
When Luna saw her husband being attacked, she exited the vehicle to assist him. Green allegedly shoved her, causing her to fall and suffer a severe head injury upon hitting the asphalt, which resulted in a cardiac event and significant brain damage, according to the complaint.
“Throughout this physical assault period, defendants’ employees never called law enforcement or requested emergency assistance,” the complaint says, alleging that police arrived only after Rangel lay injured and his wife lay unconscious on the ground.
“Paramedics transported [Rangel’s] wife to the hospital, where doctors placed her on life support for several months before she ultimately died from her injuries,” the document explains. “Defendants’ employees had sufficient time to observe Green’s conduct, recognize the danger, and intervene before the assault.”
Green was allegedly “a known vagrant” with a history of frequenting the McDonald’s. The complaint says employees “routinely encountered vagrants and unhoused individuals” on and around the fast-food restaurant and “understood that their presence created unpredictable and alarming encounters for customers,” but nothing was done.
“Defendants knew that this recurring condition created a foreseeable risk of confrontation and injury,” the complaint alleges. “Defendants’ failure to employ security personnel or implement safety measures allowed Green to remain on the property and created the conditions that led to the attack.”
Rangel and his attorney say that employees failed to monitor and supervise customer areas, ignored clear danger, and performed their duties negligently. Even without a dedicated security guard the workers had a duty to “respond reasonably” once Green’s dangerous conduct became apparent, the complaint charges.
“Employees could have called 911, warned customers, or directed Green to leave,” the document says. “Defendants had the means and responsibility to prevent this tragedy, but this business location is notorious in the community for ignoring the safety of its paying customers.”
According to the complaint, the Los Angeles Police Department responded to approximately 132 calls for service at the McDonald’s between Jan. 1, 2020, and March 9, 2024. Officers allegedly addressed 90 criminal or violent incidents, including assault, battery, robbery, vandalism, trespass, narcotics activity, public intoxication, and weapons-related threats. More than 70 of the incidents allegedly involved assault, battery, or disturbance.
“These repeated events placed defendants on actual and constructive notice that violence, trespassing, and loitering created persistent and dangerous conditions on the property,” the complaint says. “Despite the history of similar incidents, the visible warning signs immediately before the assault, and the attack unfolding in plain view for several minutes, defendants chose not to take any action to protect [Rangel] or his now deceased wife.”
Green was charged with a felony count of battery and a misdemeanor battery count, but prosecutors chose to drop the felony charge after determining that Luna’s fall was accidental, local Fox station KTTV reported. He was released on his own recognizance, with the status of his misdemeanor case being unclear.
“He’s a free man,” Luna’s stepdaughter Veronica Rangel told local news station KTLA. “My father’s wife, our stepmother is dying or pretty much dead, and where’s the justice? There was no justice at all.”
In a statement to Law&Crime, Rangel’s attorney described his civil case as one that involves a “completely preventable act of violence that occurred in a setting where patrons had every right to expect reasonable safety measures,” regardless of the circumstances.
“The lawsuit documents a history of criminal activity at this location, employees’ real-time observation of the attacker, and a failure to intervene despite clear warning signs,” Kazempour said. “We intend to pursue justice through the court process.”
McDonald’s Corp. and the franchise holders did not respond to Law&Crime’s requests for comment. The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office did not respond to Law&Crime’s requests for more information on Green’s misdemeanor charge.
