A Florida mother, Brandy Buckley, was awarded $14 million in damages after she ate ice cream that contained metal fragments and nails. The incident happened in 2018 at Bruster’s Ice Cream in Palm Bay. The injuries caused by the metal objects resulted in her becoming infertile.
She was awarded $14,147,525.39 for the trauma she endured. The compensation is meant to cover medical bills, pain, and the emotional suffering of not being able to have more children. Buckley visited the ice cream shop with her son in 2018 and got a butter pecan ice cream cone.
The ice cream contained two nails and several small metal fragments, her attorneys said. pic.twitter.com/eXz18Bynrr
— WFRV Local 5 (@WFRVLocal5) March 30, 2026
She noticed a nail in her ice cream and had already eaten contaminated ice cream. Buckley told WESH 2, “When I did swallow, I did feel something in my throat that kinda got stuck, but I never once thought it was a nail. I thought it was a pecan.”
As a precaution, she went to the hospital to get an X-ray, which confirmed there was a nail inside her body. Moreover, two metal shards were discovered in an endoscopy that required an emergency intestinal surgery. After the surgery, she developed a blood clot in an ablation.
Due to the ablation, she was no longer able to have more children. Buckley already lost her daughter in 2011 and had planned to have more kids. However, this incident crushed all her hopes. She said, “Everything that I would’ve wanted, I can’t have.”
She stated it was her goal and dream to have more kids. Buckley filed a lawsuit against the Ice Cream company and its parent company, Malabar Creameries, over negligence in 2019.
As a response, Bruster denied these claims and blamed the Florida mom for negligence. So, it was not an easy legal battle. Alpizar Law, the law firm that represented her, released a statement appreciating the verdict. The statement reads, “We are glad that a jury of Mrs. Buckley’s peers heard the evidence in the case and rendered a verdict that is fair and reasonable considering the unique and extremely personal damages this incident caused her.”
A Brevard County jury awarded over $14 million to a woman who ate ice cream contaminated with metal, according to law firm Alpizar Law. https://t.co/eCvunFc1q4
— News 6 WKMG (@news6wkmg) March 27, 2026
Her attorney, Scott Alpizar, also told People, “Mistakes happen, even from the most trusted national brands. She hopes something like this never happens again.” John Alpizar, assistant to the case noted, “This verdict reflects the seriousness of the harm our client endured and ensures accountability at all levels.”
Furthermore, Scott spoke on the responsibility of the brands to maintain food safety. He was proud that they could bring justice and accountability in this case. After the verdict, Buckley still remains clueless on what to do since she can’t achieve the dream of having a bigger family.
