Court: It’s OK if There’s Bones in Your Boneless Chicken

You might want to doublecheck your boneless chicken wings the next time you order out after a recent court ruling that says it's totally cool to have bones when something is marketed as "boneless."

According to The Columbus Dispatch, the Ohio Supreme Court made  4-3 ruling this week that "just because you order boneless chicken wings at a restaurant does not mean you shouldn't expect to find bones."

Why Are Bones Allowed In Boneless Chicken?

Yes, it does kind of defeat the purpose of chicken being "boneless," but that wasn't enough to keep the Ohio Supreme Court from ruling otherwise.

The Columbus Dispatch reported the four Republican members voted in favor of bones in boneless chicken since they are "a natural part" of the bird. So, now it's up to you to figure it out on your own whether you are putting yourself at risk assuming your boneless chicken is just that.

READ MORE: Why This Once-Thriving Wing Chain Just Shuttered Several Locations

"A diner reading "boneless wings" on a menu would no more believe that the restaurant was warranting the absence of bones in the items than believe that the items were made from chicken wings, just as a person eating 'chicken fingers' would know that he had not been served fingers," the court wrote as part of its ruling. "The food item's label on the menu described a cooking style; it was not a guarantee."

Why Is The Ohio Supreme Court Talking About Chicken?

While it may seem like a fairly mundane thing for a supreme court to be hearing the chicken bone case is actually fairly serious and dates all the way back to 2016.

The Cincinnati Enquirer says that's when Michael Berkheimer ordered parmesan garlic boneless chicken wings from Wings on Brookwood in Hamilton, Ohio and ended up with a bone in his throat.

"The bone lodged in Berkheimer's esophagus, tore his throat and cause and infection that required multiple surgeries, two medically-induced comas and left him with lasting heart and lung damage, according to court documents related to the lawsuit Berkheimer filed against the restaurant in 2017," the newspaper reported.

Berkheimer's efforts to prove the restaurant was at fault made it all the way to the Ohio Supreme Court, who ruled that is not the case.