A woman who identified herself as a police officer broke down on camera after her experience picking up a McMuffin at a drive-thru McDonald’s restaurant. The video has since gone viral.
What’s going on?
- On Wednesday, a woman named Ann posted a video on social media that showed another woman named Stacey recounting a series of events at a McDonald’s restaurant, according to MarketWatch.
- Ann said: “Stacey who has been a cop for 15 yrs went to @McDonalds. She paid for it in advance and this is how she gets treated for being a cop.” MarketWatch reached out to Ann to verify the authenticity and origins of the video, but she did not respond by press time. But the local McDonald’s owner/operators confirmed the incident to MarketWatch.
- The woman ordered and paid for a McMuffin, hash browns and a coffee at a Georgia McDonald’s restaurant.
- An employee asked her to pull out of the line because the order wasn’t ready.
- The employee later brought her just the coffee — not the food.
- She said: “So I told her, I said, ‘Don’t bother with the food because now I’m too nervous to take it.’ It doesn’t matter how many hours I’ve been up.”
- She said: “It doesn’t matter what I’ve done for anyone. Right now, I’m too nervous to take a meal from McDonald’s because I can’t see it being made.”
- She added: “I don’t know what’s going on with people nowadays, but please give us a break ... if you see an officer say ‘Thank you,’ because I don’t hear ‘Thank you’ enough any more.”
What happened next?
- According to USA Today, social media debated the video and its implications. Donald Trump Jr., the son of President Donald Trump, tweeted the video, saying: “Disgusting what’s going on right now.”
- Some social media members defended the officer. People questioned whether or not she was upset about the order.
- According to Complex, some people referred to the officer as “Karen, Officer Karen, McMuffin Karen” — a reference to the slang term used to often describe an adult woman who complains.
Did McDonald’s respond?
The McDonald’s owners Gary and Jill Stanberry told MarketWatch in a statement that they have been in contact with the officer to apologize.
- “Unfortunately, we were made aware of a local police officer who experienced a longer than usual wait time and did not receive her full order right away at one of our restaurants. We have been in contact with this officer to apologize for this unsatisfactory experience and let her know that we would love to correct the inaccurate order when she has time. We are happy to report that the officer was never denied service and also shared positive feedback on the employee with whom she interacted.”
Update: The Richmond Police Department said that the woman is not a member of the police force despite reports. Her identity has not been confirmed.
We have received multiple phone calls and messages about a video that was posted by a female officer complaining about her service at a local restaurant.
The officer in the video does not work for nor represent the Richmond Hill Police Department. We have contacted the agency she works for and have passed along our concerns.