The Supreme Court on Monday refused to shield a fast-food business in Washington state from being sued in California over a 1993 outbreak of illnesses linked to hamburgers at Jack-in-the-Box restaurants.

The justices, without comment, rejected an appeal by Washington Restaurant Management Inc., which once ran three Jack-in-the-Box franchises in Washington state, that California courts have no power over it.

Monday’s action, although not a ruling, left intact a California Supreme Court decision that forces WRMI to defend itself in a California trial.

Three children died and hundreds of people became sick in early 1993 after eating Jack-in-the-Box burgers that allegedly were undercooked and contained E. coli bacteria. WRMI was identified as one of the franchises that had sold the tainted hamburgers.

A number of Jack-in-the-Box franchises - but not WRMI - sued over lost profits as a result of the negative publicity surrounding the outbreak. The defendants included Foodmaker Inc., the San Diego-based parent of Jack-in-the-Box; the Vons Companies, which supplied ground beef for Foodmaker; and beef suppliers that had delivered meat to Vons’ plant in El Monte, Calif.

Vons responded to the lawsuits by filing a cross complaint against the owners of several Jack-in-the-Box franchises, including WRMI.

Vons alleged that the franchises undercooked hamburger patties.