In 2013, she received another prison sentence for an unrelated incident regarding filing a false police report and felony firearm possession.
[1] In 1998, Ayala brought a lawsuit against San Jose-based La Oferta Review Newspaper for sexual harassment.
[1] On March 22, 2005, Ayala alleged that she had found a severed human finger in her chili con carne at a Wendy's location in San Jose.
[5] Las Vegas police arrested Ayala on April 21, 2005, the same day Wendy's completed its internal investigation finding no evidence that any employee was involved with the finger.
[3][8] Additionally, management of that San Jose Wendy's said that revenue declined nearly 50 percent as a result of Ayala's claims and forced the cutting of employees' hours.
[9] Immediately following the arrest, Wendy's held a promotion offering customers free Frosty desserts at Bay Area restaurants on the weekend of April 22 to 24.
[11] The San Francisco Chronicle confirmed on May 18, 2005, that the finger belonged to Brian Paul Rossiter, an associate of Ayala's husband.
[21][19] In 2013, Ayala made international headlines again after being sentenced to two years in prison for being an accessory to a felony, filing a false police report and being a felon in possession of a firearm.
[23] In 2024, Ayala was briefly quoted by The New York Times in a story related to polling for the presidential election without disclosing her background.