The grandmother who claims she was arrested at Disney World’s Magic Kingdom for having CBD oil in her bag is following through with her threat to sue … for a huge payday.
Civil rights attorney Ben Crump just filed suit against Disney, the Orlando Police Department and the Orange County Sheriff’s Department on behalf of Hester Burkhalter. The 69-year-old North Carolina grandma claims she was busted by Mouse House security for carrying a bottle of CBD oil.
According to the lawsuit, obtained by TMZ, Hester says she was arrested and detained by cops at Disney World in April 2019 — even though she claims the CBD oil was purely for medical purposes related to her arthritis, and didn’t contain THC.
The grandmother says she was handcuffed in front of her 8 and 10-year-old grandchildren, and says the entire ordeal was traumatizing for the little ones.
In the docs, grandma says she panicked while being placed in the back of a police car and began vomiting, but was denied medical attention and subjected to a miserable 15-hour ordeal. Hester says she was further humiliated because cops allegedly made her strip down at the jail for a cavity search.
Prosecutors did not pursue charges and closed the case against her — Hester claims cops even tested the CBD oil and found no trace of THC — but she says she’s filing suit because she still feels traumatized.
In her suit, Hester is alleging assault and battery, false arrest and imprisonment, defamation, emotional distress, and more … and she wants more than $18 million in damages plus additional damages for her husband and other family members.