STARBUCKS SUED OVER INJURY IN REST ROOM
By SALVATORE ARENA DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
Tuesday, November 30th 1999, 2:11AM
Coffee beans are not the only thing Starbucks is grinding these days, a suit alleges.
A Canadian man says his penis was crushed by a faulty toilet seat at a Manhattan Starbucks and yesterday he sued the java giant for $1.5 million.
Edward Skwarek says the injury permanently damaged his sex life and ended hopes that he and his wife could conceive a child naturally.
Skwarek, 37, and his wife, Sherrie, were vacationing in New York in August when they entered a Starbucks at 684 Sixth Ave., near 27th St. After they placed their order, Edward Skwarek went to the men’s room.
“After sitting down, he realized that the toilet paper was not in its place but on the tank behind him,” said Skwarek’s New York attorney, Richard Robbins.
“As he turned around, the toilet seat suddenly shifted from side to side, causing his penis to be caught and crushed in between the seat and the bowl.”
The lawyer said the seat apparently moved because the plastic bolts holding it in place were loose.
His wife took him to Roosevelt Hospital, where he was treated and released.
The permanent damage was not diagnosed until he returned home to Toronto, according to Robbins.
The Manhattan Supreme Court suit seeks $1 million in damages for Edward Skwarek and $500,000 for the loss to Sherrie Skwarek.
Starbucks spokesman Alan Guilick said the company does not comment on pending litigation.
