Inset: Eric Champagne Price (Texas Department of Public Safety). Background: The McDonald's where the sexual assault occurred (KBTX).
The family of a sexual assault victim has filed a lawsuit against a Texas McDonald's for hiring a registered sex offender who raped his 15-year-old co-worker near a dumpster outside the restaurant where they both worked.
Eric Champagne Price, 29, lured the girl to an area behind a McDonald's in Hearne, nearly 90 miles northeast of Austin, on April 16, 2023, and sexually assaulted her before he returned to work as if nothing happened. The lawsuit alleged the company knew Price had been listed on Texas' sex offender website and placed "the wolf amongst the sheep."
"McDonald's was Price's hunting ground, and a predictable tragedy ensued," the lawsuit said.
The lawsuit, filed as Jane Doe, names McDonald's Corporation, McDonald's USA, LLC, and franchisee McKinney Restaurant Management, Inc. It alleges the defendants negligently hired, retained, and failed to supervise Price. It seeks over $1 million in damages.
Representatives for McDonald's and McKinney Restaurant Management did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Law&Crime.
Jane Doe's attorney, Will Calderon, said the case exposes a shocking level of negligence that directly endangered a vulnerable child.
"As the nation's largest employer of children, McDonald's has a paramount responsibility to protect its young workers," Calderon said in a statement. "We are determined to hold them accountable and advocate for essential policy reforms to ensure the safety of all minor employees."
In a statement issued after the assault, McDonald's said, "The safety of our customers and our crew is always a top priority. We are aware of this incident and this kind of behavior goes against the values we have as an organization and is not tolerated. The employee in question has been terminated. We are cooperating fully with law enforcement to assist them with their ongoing investigation."
Court papers say McDonald's and its franchisee denied responsibility, blaming the child. In an answer denying any liability, the company claimed it does "not operate, manage, control, or maintain the restaurant" where the child was raped and had no employees at that location at the time. McKinney also filed a general denial of all allegations and is owned by former Houston Texans football player Steve McKinney, court documents said.
Neither McDonald's nor McKinney have explained why a twice-convicted child rapist and registered sex offender was working the same shift as multiple 15 and 16-year-old children, court documents said.
The lawsuit said McDonald's blamed the victim, alleging Jane Doe has "unclean hands" and implied she may have engaged in "improper conduct" that resulted in her rape at the hands of its convicted child rapist and registered sex offender employee.
Price served a prison sentence for two prior convictions for child sexual abuse. The Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) identified the McDonald's employee as a risk on its Texas Public Sex Offender Registry before he started working at the franchise. Texas DPS indicated that "the person poses a moderate danger to the community and may continue to engage in criminal sexual conduct," court documents said.
At the time Price applied for a job at McDonald's, he was on the Registered Sex Offender list.
Price was convicted of indecency with a child by exposure on Feb. 10, 2014. His female victim was 13. Price had been convicted of sexual assault of a 15-year-old girl on Jan. 13, 2016.
Price pleaded guilty to a charge of sexual assault of a child in the McDonald's case in June and was sentenced to 40 years in prison, the victim's attorneys said.
