Court Rules Boneless Wings Can Have Bones After Customer Tears His Esophagus

After a customer suffered a torn esophagus from consuming so-called ‘boneless’ wings at a restaurant, the Ohio Supreme Court determined that patrons cannot assume these wings will be entirely free of bones.

While dining at Wings on Brookwood, Michael Berkheimer was enjoying some boneless chicken wings with parmesan garlic sauce when he suddenly felt something caught in his throat.

After experiencing three days of sickness and regularly vomiting, Berkheimer sought medical attention and was informed that a piece of bone from his chicken had punctured his esophagus, resulting in an infection.

Berkheimer initiated legal proceedings against the restaurant after discovering that their advertised ‘boneless wings’ still contained bones. He has also included the farm that supplied the chicken wings and the supplier company in his lawsuit, not just Wings on Brookwood.

ohio-sc-rules-boneless-wings-can-have-bones — Unsplash.com: Peter Pham

Ohio’s Supreme Court ruled that ‘boneless’ wings can’t be expected to be completely bone-free.

Despite his arguments, the Ohio Supreme Court ruled against him. In a tight vote of 4-3, they declared that ‘boneless’ is a type of cooking and that restaurant-goers should be mindful that chickens do have bones, which may occasionally be found in the meat.

According to Justice Joseph T. Deters, if a diner sees ‘boneless wings’ on a menu, they would not assume that the restaurant is guaranteeing the lack of bones in the food. Similarly, if someone orders ‘chicken fingers’, they would understand that they are not actually being served fingers.

Despite Deters’ statement, his fellow Justices did not fully agree and instead criticized his reasoning as “complete nonsense.”

ohio-supreme-court-rules-boneless-wings — Unsplash.com: This Moffat

The Ohio Supreme Court was fairly divided on the decision, with some calling the ruling “utter jabberwocky.”

Justice Michael P. Donnelly posed the question: Do parents in this country truly anticipate finding bones in the chicken when they serve their young children boneless wings, chicken tenders, nuggets, or fingers? Of course not. He asserted that the word “boneless”is universally understood to mean “without bones”by all rational individuals.

It’s not uncommon for judges to make surprising rulings when it comes to food. In May 2024, a judge in Indiana caused a stir by declaring that both tacos and burritos could be considered sandwiches, sparking heated debates online.