Man Gets 45 Days In Jail After Pulling Gun On Teens At McDonald's
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- An Eden Prairie man will spend time behind bars for pulling a gun on a group of teenagers at a local McDonald's. The incident happened last November at a McDonald's in Eden Prairie.
Surveillance video showed 55-year-old Lloyd Johnson pulling a gun on the teens after confronting them to hurry up in line. Johnson does not have a permit to carry a firearm.
The victims told police that they were waiting in line for their food, when Johnson told them to hurry up and said they must have been paying with government assistance. When one of the girls confronted Johnson about his comments, she said he appeared to make a fist. The girls asked for help from their friends. That's when cell phone video showed Johnson pulling a gun on the group and yelling, before leaving the restaurant.
"Being confronted with such blatant racism was not something foreign to me. However, I never felt it to be escalated to this point where I feared for my life," the statement, read by the victim's representative Hodan Abdi, said.
A representative read emotional victim impact statements in court written by two Somali teenagers. One of the victims, a 17-year-old, said Johnson's actions at a McDonald's in Eden Prairie last November left them traumatized and unable to concentrate in school.
"No one, young or old, should have to deal with anything like that," Abdi said.
Johnson was composed as he addressed the court--apologizing to the victims, as well as his own family and friends for his actions.
"I'm sorry for that, I just wish I could take that all back," Johnson said.
He said he was hungry and impatient that night, but that he was not racist.
"I do appreciate your apology, although I have to say don't think you totally understand the impact that you had," the judge said.
The judge sentenced Johnson to 45 days in jail and 24 days of community service. He would report to the workhouse in the afternoon.
As part of an agreement between the state and the defense, Johnson's charge could be dropped from a felony to a misdemeanor if he follows all of the guidelines of his sentencing, which also includes surrendering his firearms and undergoing a mental health evaluation along with counseling.
Johnson will be on supervised probation for three years and pay a three thousand dollar fine. He is not allowed to have any contact with the victims.
