Placement on leave for an officer who struck a woman in a McDonald’s dispute

DAYTON, Ohio (AP) — An Ohio police officer has been put on administrative leave after video showed him punching a Black woman several times as she was taken into custody following a dispute at a McDonald’s over extra cheese on a Big Mac.

The incident was captured on video by an uninvolved witness shortly after 4 pm Monday at the restaurant located in Butler Township, Ohio. It all started when Latinka Hancock, a 31-year-old woman from Dayton, purchased a Big Mac. She then returned to the restaurant short while later complaining that it didn’t have the extra cheese that she ordered.

Hancock claimed that a restaurant worker asked Hancock for a re-made burger. However, the other employee later asked Hancock for more cheese. Hancock claimed she had already paid for the burger and requested a refund. Hancock claims she was eventually granted a refund.

Hancock stated that she was informed by the police that she had been summoned and was then asked to leave. Two Butler officers — Sgt. Todd Stanley and Tim Zellers — responded there around 4:20 p.m. and approached Hancock, who spoke with them about what had occurred.

When the officer’s asked Hancock for her driver’s license, authorities say Hancock told them she didn’t have one and refused to provide her identification. Soon, the exchange became heated and Hancock was taken into custody by one of his officers.

The officers said Hancock resisted arrest, and Stanley eventually hit Hancock on the right side of the face with an “open palm strike.” Hancock was then placed in handcuffs, put into a police cruiser and charged with resisting arrest and three other minor counts. Hancock had bleeding from her mouth, according to authorities. An EMT treated the wound and determined that it was not serious.

Stanley has served more than 22 years on the Butler Police force, while Zellers served about 2 1/2. Butler Police Chief John Porter said Stanley has no formal reprimands in his personnel file and was placed on leave as a result of repeated correspondence from concerned residents, including “a lot of hate emails and phone calls.”

Porter confirmed that Zellers is not on leave.

Hancock and Michael Wright, her attorney, held a press conference Wednesday to discuss the matter. Hancock stated that she felt like her life was at stake over a sandwich, and that it was fortunate that she was able now to tell her side.

“I don’t want people to feel like I’m complaining for a piece of cheese,” she said.

Wright said the responding officers “were looking for a fight, rather than to deescalate.”

He demanded Stanley’s firing and he be charged with assault. He also criticised the restaurant for calling the police to resolve the dispute.

“If they can’t manage basic customer service, opting to potentially put a person’s life in jeopardy over a mishandled Big Mac, it doesn’t seem safe for Black people to go and eat at McDonald’s anymore,” Wright said.

Wright said no decision has been made yet on whether a lawsuit will be filed, noting that his firm was waiting for additional videos inside McDonald’s and more information from police.

McDonald’s has not responded to an email request for comment on Thursday evening.