Las Vegas restaurant owner sues DoorDash after being stabbed by driver

A restaurant owner who was stabbed by a DoorDash driver last year filed a lawsuit Thursday against the company, claiming that a flaw in its background check process nearly cost him his life.

Fabio Coppola, owner of Roma Deli and Restaurant at 5755 Spring Mountain Road, suffered multiple stab wounds in October 2018 after an altercation with a DoorDash driver who had arrived at his restaurant to pick up an order.

DoorDash driver Mackie Allen, 32, was arrested in November on an attempted murder charge in connection with the stabbing and is currently awaiting his preliminary hearing.

“At DoorDash, we take the safety of our community extremely seriously. We sincerely regret that this incident fell short of the experience we strive to give our customers every day,” a DoorDash spokesperson said in a statement. “While we can’t comment on active litigation, we have taken appropriate actions including immediately deactivating the Dasher from our platform for failing to follow and maintain our code of conduct.”

“Dasher” is the term DoorDash uses for its drivers.

The complaint alleges that Allen, who has prior felony convictions for robbery and forgery, slipped through a loophole in DoorDash’s background check process. The background check reviews seven years of criminal history, but Allen wasn’t charged with any crimes during that period because he was serving a prison sentence, according to the suit.

“As our complaint details, DoorDash’s flawed background check policy almost cost Mr. Coppola his life,” Coppola’s attorney, Richard Schonfeld, said in a statement. “This case raises important questions in terms of the minimum standards that should be required to protect both consumers and restaurant workers.”

Details on Allen’s criminal history are publicly available through court records, according to the suit. DoorDash contracts with a company called Checkr, which also runs background checks for Uber.

According to the complaint, Coppola saw Allen in the parking lot and knocked on his driver’s side window to let him know the food was ready. The driver became aggressive, the suit alleges, and used profanity in the restaurant while Coppola tried to hand over the order.

When Coppola tried to usher the man out the door, according to the suit, the man pulled out a pocket knife and slashed at Coppola before chasing him around the parking lot and stabbing him multiple times.

According to the suit, the driver then left and delivered the order to a customer.

After the stabbing, the suit alleges, Coppola was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder. He also suffered a shoulder injury that will require future surgery, according to the document.

Coppola is seeking over $50,000 in damages, claiming assault and battery and various forms of negligence. The lawsuit was filed in Clark County District Court.

Contact Max Michor at mmichor@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0365. Follow @MaxMichor on Twitter.