Subway continues to be in the hot seat after another bad press release recently published by the New York Times.

Earlier this week, the Times conducted a lab analysis centered around the fast-food franchise’s tuna sandwich. After ordering “60 inches worth of Subway tuna sandwiches” from three different locations in Los Angeles, the study found that the sandwiches didn’t contain tuna DNA or a species that could be identified from the samples provided.

“No amplifiable tuna DNA was present in the sample and so we obtained no amplification products from the DNA,” the report read. “Therefore, we cannot identify the species.” The study followed a lawsuit that was filed months ago against Subway. The suit accused the company of using “a mixture of various concoctions that do not constitute tuna.” The claims were supported by independent lab tests that suggested the mysterious ingredients are “blended together” in an effort to “imitate” the appearance of tuna, Complex reported.

However, a similar study conducted by Inside Edition tested sandwiches from three locations in New York City and found that those samples contained tuna.

Apparently, there are several possible reasons why there was no tuna DNA present in the tested samples.

“There’s two conclusions. One, it’s so heavily processed that whatever we could pull out, we couldn’t make an identification,” a lab spokesperson explained. “Or we got some and there’s just nothing there that’s tuna.”

Another fish expert suggested that the sample was difficult to test because the protein may have broken down after being cooked.

But Subway made sure to step forward to defend itself by questioning the validity of the DNA testing while also sticking to the aforementioned fish expert’s explanation.

“A recent New York Times report indicates that DNA testing is an unreliable methodology for identifying processed tuna. This report supports and reflects the position that Subway has taken in relation to a meritless lawsuit filed in California and with respect to DNA testing as a means to identify cooked proteins,” the statement reads, per Business Insider. “DNA testing is simply not a reliable way to identify denatured proteins, like Subway’s tuna, which was cooked before it was tested.”

“Unfortunately, various media outlets have confused the inability of DNA testing to confirm a specific protein with a determination that the protein is not present,” the statement added. “The testing that the New York Times report references does not show that there is not tuna in Subway’s tuna. All it says is that the testing could not confirm tuna, which is what one would expect from a DNA test of denatured proteins.”

The chain assures that its Tuna is “100% wild-caught, cooked tuna.”
Thoughts?

A lawsuit claims Subway‘s tuna doesn’t actually have tuna in it.

We already went through with the yoga mat situation, Subway. Now the tuna allegedly isn’t really tuna?? That is what two California women say in a multimillion-dollar lawsuit, claiming the popular deli restaurant’s tuna sandwich actually contains “scintilla” of the fish. The women say the restaurant scammed them with false advertisements, and now they want $5 million in damages.

Alameda County, Calif. residents Karen Dhanowa and Nilima Amin, filed their lawsuit against the restaurant last week. In it, they stated they ordered tuna from Subway as early as last year from locations near their home. The New York Post reports the lawsuit was filed in the Northern District of California.

The legal document states that “independent testing has repeatedly affirmed, the products are made from anything but tuna.” It goes on to say that Subway’s tuna is actually “made from a mixture of various concoctions that do not constitute tuna, yet have been blended together by defendants to imitate the appearance of tuna.” The filing alleges Subway has continued to use the fake tuna because it costs less than real tuna.

“Aware that consumers place a heightened value on tuna as an ingredient, defendants deliberately make false and misleading claims about the composition of the products to increase profits at the expense of unsuspecting buyers,” the suit states. The women say they were “were tricked into buying food items that wholly lacked the ingredient they reasonably thought they were purchasing.” The women said they would have never purchased Subway’s tuna or would have bought it for a lower price.

The lawsuit states the restaurant should be held responsible for fraud, intentional misrepresentation, negligent misrepresentation, and unjust enrichment against the company. In addition, the women would like the judge to grant the ability to turn their lawsuit into a class-action suit so that others can “seek reimbursement of the premium” they paid “due to defendants’ false and deceptive representations about the composition and ingredients of the products.”

In response, a Subway spokesperson said the women’s claims are “baseless” and “frivolous,” adding that they “are being pursued without adequate investigation.” “There simply is no truth to the allegations in the complaint that was filed in California,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “Subway delivers 100% cooked tuna to its restaurants, which is mixed with mayonnaise and used in freshly made sandwiches, wraps, and salads that are served to and enjoyed by our guests.”

The restaurant states the allegations “threaten to damage our franchisees, small business owners who work tirelessly to uphold the high standards that Subway sets for all of its products, including its tuna.” The rep continued, saying, “Unfortunately, this lawsuit is part of a trend in which the named plaintiffs’ attorneys have been targeting the food industry in an effort to make a name for themselves in that space.”

A video has been released showing a man pushing a 73-year-old woman on a subway track in Brooklyn, New York.

According to CBS New York, the incident happened around 1:30 PM at the station located on the southbound A/C platform at the Clinton-Washington station.

Authorities say the suspect was smoking marijuana on the platform when he walked by the 73-year-old grandmother, the 82-year-old grandfather, and their 30-year-old grandson.

The report says the grandson was taking his grandparents to apply for Medicaid, but when the grandson asked the suspect to stop smoking, that’s when things took a turn.

The suspect, who is described as having a light complexion, between the age of 25 to 30 years of age, 5’7, and 200lbs, punched Fan in the face. When the grandfather rushed to his aid, he was then beaten. And to make matters worse, the suspect pushed the elderly grandmother onto the tracks of an oncoming train.

Luckily, the conductor was able to stop in time.

But the trio suffered injuries, the grandfather has been released, but the two remain in the hospital with severe head injuries.

“When I saw my dad, he had blood behind his head and a bleeding lip. My mother had oxygen tubes inserted down her throat. Her legs were wrapped in bandaging,” daughter Ren Cheng said through a translator. She was too upset to appear on camera.

“How can there be people like this? You only say one thing, and they turn around and assault you? There’s no law and order anymore in America,” Cheng said.

“There are so many people walking around here that are ticking time bombs,” added Tiffany Coates of East New York.

NYPD officers are facing backlash after a video showed at least 10 policemen ambush and pulled their guns on an unarmed Black teen on a crowded subway.

This past Friday, 19-year-old Adrian Napier was chased and ambushed on a 4-line subway car after he allegedly jumped a turnstile without paying in order to get away from police. Video shows the teen with his hands up while officers on and off the train had their guns drawn. The police entered the crowded train car with their guns drawn and tackled Napier to the ground, claiming they were concerned he might have been armed.

Several passengers scattered on the subway when they saw the police and took off running when the car doors opened. NYPD officers have reportedly been involved in at least 11 fatal shootings this year so far, Vice Media reports. The New York City Police Department said in a statement to NBC 4 New York that officers were responding to “an alert for a male with a gun,” based on witness reports around rush hour Friday. The New York City Police Department said in a statement to NBC 4 New York that officers were responding to “an alert for a male with a gun,” based on witness reports that were sent out Friday. Officers spoke to news outlets saying that when they approached Napier a few moments after the witness statements, he allegedly jumped a turnstile and boarded a southbound train. He was ultimately charged with theft of service, aka fare evasion.

The video of Napier went viral throughout the nation, only adding to the dead relationship between the police force and the public – in particular people of color. The city has been cracking down on fare evasion, which has prompted plans to hire 500 more transit officers who would police the city’s subway stations. The officers won’t be considered part of the New York Police Department, which means they’re not required to wear body cameras, according to Gothamist.

Since the footage went viral, many have spoken out over the counterproductive actions taken by the government in regard to combating fare evasion. “This man didn’t pay his subway fare—but is tackled by at least ten officers in a crowded station. Officers should be working to deescalate—not putting dozens of lives at risk over $2.75,” said Democratic presidential candidate Julián Castro. 

Another Twitter user wrote, “The NYPD has shot & killed 4 people in the last 10 days. Watch people in this subway car panic when police take out their guns & point them at a person they’re arresting. People aren’t scared of the person being arrested. They’re scared of the police.”

Emily Zamourka, a homeless Russian singer who went viral for an incredible performance in a Los Angeles subway, was offered a major record deal.

Grammy-nominated music producer Joel Diamond spoke to TMZ after they broke the story, saying he wrote an offer letter for Zamourka in the hopes of making a “huge classical-EDM crossover hit record for the subway soprano.”

Diamond said under the deal; the first record would be called “Paradise” and released on Silver Blue Records, which he founded in 1973, according to the New York Post.

The producer and the rest of the world first learned of the singer after the Los Angeles Police Department tweeted a video of her singing opera in a subway station.

The internet immediately fell for the 52-year-old, who became homeless after her medical bills became too much. Zamourka moved to the United States more than 20 years ago and was a violin and piano teacher before falling ill. 

“I have people that feel sorry for me, but I don’t want to be a burden to anybody,” she told ABC 7.

Along with the record deal, two GoFundMe campaigns have raised thousands of dollars for Zamourka, one surpassing $52,000 and the other tipping $32,000 according to the reports.

TMZ reported she already booked a gig singing at an Italian heritage event in Los Angeles on Saturday.

4 million people call LA home. 4 million stories. 4 million voices…sometimes you just have to stop and listen to one, to hear something beautiful. pic.twitter.com/VzlmA0c6jX

— LAPD HQ (@LAPDHQ) September 27, 2019

A Subway manager was fired on Thursday after footage surfaced of the restaurant employee hurling racial slurs at a customer. 

The incident occurred Tuesday night at the sandwich shop on Valley Ave in Birmingham, Alabama, upon the customer, Antuan Clark’s arrival. 

According to reports, Clark said he went to the restaurant to visit his sister on her first day at work. However, the visit quickly turned into a nightmare after an unnamed manager condemned him for loitering. 

The incident quickly escalated, as the manager began hurling racial slurs at Clark, which prompted him to record the entire ordeal. 

The video later went viral. 

Since then, the manager, who has since been identified as April Epperson, has been fired and the location has been shut down for additional training. 

But now, in the wake of her dismissal, Epperson is looking to open up and apologize about her “slip up.” 

“She’s in training and while she’s here she doesn’t need a distraction,” Epperson said as she explained why she asked Clark to leave the premises. “I’m going to need them to get away from the property or step off the property while she’s at work.” 

“He punched me in the face. I pushed him out the door because that was the only thing I knew to do. I felt like I was in danger. I pushed him out the door. He punches me in my face and as soon as I shut the door, the only thing that came out of my mouth was, “Ni**er,” and I’m sorry,” she said. “It could have been a Mexican standing there. It popped out of my mouth that’s what that Mexican would have got called. That white person would have got called that too.” 

“I said the wrong word. I’m sorry for it. I am taking my punishment and I’m walking away from it,” she added. “I get that I screwed up. I’m a big girl. I can handle it. But I can’t handle being called racist on national television over a slip up.” 

Epperson was fired Thursday for the incident and has since apologized.

—blogged by @lovelikejhoney

Imagine riding on the subway, minding your business, when a bedbug suddenly crawls off the Metro subway seat and onto your shorts. That was Chris Rusak’s last subway experience before he vowed to never sit on the bed bug infested seats again.

“Sometimes you’re tired, or you don’t feel good, and you just want to sit down. But you know what? It isn’t worth it,” Rusak told the L.A. Times.

The Los Angeles County Metro system plans to redesign the seats on subway cars, phasing out the fuzzy fabric seat coverings currently used on subway, rail and bus lines. Bob Spadafora, the Metro executive overseeing the change, tells the Los Angeles Times the fabric is like “a housing development for germs,” allowing them to fester and breed.

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Although Metro’s seats are cleaned regularly, on a system that carries more than 1.2 million trips per day, passengers unknowingly sit in an limitless collection of substances, including ants, bed bugs, blood, animal and human feces, lice, urine, spilled food and more.

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Vinyl will be used to replace the brightly patterned fabric that often conceals these safety hazards. The plastic-based fabrics will be installed on all subway cars, Metro says, because they are non-absorbent, cheaper to install and easier to keep clean. 

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Over the next six years, the seat change will occur on the Red and Purple lines, which represent a small fraction of the Metro system’s vehicles. The agency has no immediate plans to discard the upholstery on its 2,438 buses or four light-rail line; however, if the new subway seats are a success, the Gold Line could be next.

On Thursday, an NYC subway rider unexpectedly received a golden shower on a subway train heading south.

According to reports, the 26-year-old victim told officials that she was listening to music with her eyes closed when she felt something wet splashing on her face. When she opened her eyes, she realized a man had exposed himself and was peeing on her.

The suspect then got off the J train at Cypress Hills and fled the scene.

The victim was not injured but she reported the incident to the authorities. Officials say the suspect was last seen wearing a red shirt and black pants. If arrested, the suspect could be charged with public lewdness.

In the court docs, McLaughlin says that back in 2004, a senior exec at Subway received a complaint that Fogle had approached a young girl at a Las Vegas Subway event and solicited a sex act. She says over the years, they’ve received at least two more complaints, and investigated, but neglected to alert authorities.

Kathleen’s issue is that despite knowing Fogle was trash,  the company decided market their family, using her and their 2 children’s likeness without consent, in an animated commercial that’s aired over 2,300 times since 2015. She says the ad has caused her and their children great damage and had Subway reported Fogle back in 2004, she would’ve never married him in 2010.

“I filed this lawsuit because I have questions,” McLaughlin said. She is requesting an unspecified amount in damages.

Jared Fogle faces 15 years and 8 months in prison after pleading guilty to possession or distribution of child pornography and traveling across state lines to have commercial sex with a minor.