BlueLivesMatterBY OFFICER BLUE
Hampton, VA – McDonald’s has now responded after a police officer in full uniform was refused service at a Hampton McDonald’s after making him wait 26 minutes.
We had initially reported on a tip which pointed us to the Facebook page of a Hampton police officer’s wife. Emily Belbin Bond out of Virginia Beach, Virginia posted about how her husband went to McDonald’s while in uniform, and had to wait in the drive thru for 26 minutes. An employee then looked at this officer with disgust and handed her the bag of food while saying, “I just can’t, I’m allergic.” The officer asked the employee why he couldn’t just get his food, to which the employee responded, “I’m allergic!”
The owner of the particular McDonald’s where this incident happened has released the following statement:
“At our restaurants, we proudly support police officers and all divisions of first responders who protect and serve our communities, and we aim to provide a welcoming environment for all of our customers. We take this complaint very seriously and are conducting a full investigation into the matter.” – John Smith, Owner/Operator
Furthermore, the Hampton Police Department released the following statement:
Many of our followers and supporters have reached out to us in reference to an incident that was reported on social media and involved an employee that disrespected one of our officers at a local restaurant.
We are so appreciative of everyone’s support. We recognize that these are tumultuous times and that some people in our community may, for whatever reason, choose to not support their local police. Anytime a member of the community disrespects an officer, it is disheartening. However, we also understand that one bad apple or incident is not representative of nor define the entire organization as a whole.
The Hampton Police Division has historically had a very good partnership with the McDonalds cooperation and we look forward to continuing that partnership in the future. The Owner is has always supported HPD and our officers in our crime reduction initiatives.
After speaking with the owner and management of this establishment, we feel confident that the issue will be dealt with accordingly after the completion of an on-going internal investigation.
While many people would surely prefer a clear statement on the employee’s actual consequences for this incident, it seems clear that this business owner isn’t going to allow his employees to disrespect police officers. This appears to be an isolated incident with one problem employee and the problem will be corrected.
Thank you John for handling this appropriately.