Earlier this week, an employee at a McDonald’s on Detroit’s west side was caught on tape offering food to an apparently homeless man near the drive-thru window–only to throw a cup of hot water at him. Well, thankfully, that jerk has been fired, and could potentially face criminal charges for his assault of an innocent man.
On Tuesday afternoon, Wise Finley, who owns the McDonald’s where this outrageous incident took place, issued a statement saying that the actions of his now-former employee were “inappropriate” and ran counter to his expectations that everyone who comes to his restaurant is treated “with dignity and respect.” Finley said that as a result of this idiot’s “unacceptable” behavior, he “no longer works for my organization.” Finley really had no choice but to give this guy his walking papers. There is no way he would have been able to stay in business if he even appeared to condone this.
WXYZ-TV in Detroit learned that the victim was 63-year-old Willie Payne, Jr. It turns out that Payne isn’t homeless, but is a longtime panhandler in the west side neighborhood where the McDonald’s was located. Payne and several of his friends spoke to WXYZ about the ordeal. Payne said that he believed the worker was going to give him “a little something to eat,” and was “a little upset”–to put it mildly–when he had water thrown at him instead. He said that he only had “a little change” on hand for things that he needed. He’s hoping to get an apology.
Tonya Black, who frequently gives food to Payne, couldn’t believe what she saw. She wanted to remind the worker that “this could have been your family member, or it could have been you.”
Several area homeless advocates are also upset. Bishop Daryl Harris, a member of Detroit’s Human Rights Commission, told the Detroit Free Press that he and other area pastors are trying to get in touch with Payne and lend him a hand–even with something from McDonald’s dollar menu.
You would have thought that any employee who did this would not only be fired, but be taken out of the restaurant in handcuffs on the same day he was fired. Incredibly, Detroit police said that they didn’t have an active investigation into the matter as of Wednesday night, even with the video being readily available. Police did say, however, that they are hoping to speak with Payne very soon.
I hope the now-former employee has the decency to turn himself in, or that one of his friends does the right thing and turns him in. I also hope that whoever the judge is in this case comes down on him with hobnail boots. This is the kind of behavior that no civilized society can tolerate.
