Outrage Erupts Online After Police Officer Refused Service At Milaca Hardee's
MILACA, Minn. (WCCO) -- People sounded off on social media, outraged after a cook at a fast food restaurant refused to make food for a police officer.
Milaca police officer Jackie Minks posted on Facebook about what happened Tuesday at the local Hardee's. She said the reason was the cook didn't like cops. That post went viral.
Minks' Facebook post lays out the situation: "Today a cook at Hardee's in Milaca refused to make food for me because she doesn't like cops."
"I was surprised," Minks told WCCO. "It doesn't usually happen to law enforcement, although it seems to become more of a trend."
After the incident, she shared what happened on social media. Minks said the manager ended up cooking her meal, and says she "dismissed it as silly" and didn't intend to reprimand the employee.
People and police officers from around the country commented on the post. Many were angry, vowing to never eat at Hardee's again.
"I've always had a good relationship with Hardee's and their employees," Minks said, "and this was an unfortunate incident with a couple of employees. They are an active business and provide a number of jobs in our community. The ownership and management apologized for what happened and responded quickly to the situation and brought resolution to the matter."
A CKE spokesperson for Hardee's told WCCO the employee who refused to cook for Minks no longer works there:
"We investigated this incident and the employee who was involved no longer works for the franchise-owner of this Hardee's restaurant. It appears to have arisen from a past matter between the officer and the former employee. All of us at Hardee's are very appreciative of the service that the Milaca police officers provide and their patronage of this restaurant. As a show of our support and appreciation for Milaca police officers we have offered to buy the entire police department breakfast."
Officer Minks said Hardee's delivered breakfast Friday morning, and every officer received a card to get breakfast.
Police Chief Todd Quaintance said he's proud of the partnerships that the Milaca Police Department has developed with the business community in Milaca:
"The incident involving a Milaca officer having an employee refuse to provide service was unfortunate, but I feel this is an isolated incident that does not reflect the relationship between the Milaca Police Department and any business. I have no concerns about our ability to have a successful relationship with all of our local businesses. We acknowledge that Hardee's has taken action on this matter and we believe the matter is closed."