A Black customer is suing a McDonald’s franchise, alleging that one employee called him a racist term and that a manager caused him to be falsely arrested on an untrue allegation that he tried to steal her cell phone,
Joshua Gordon’s Los Angeles Superior Court lawsuit, filed against Garco Enterprises Inc., alleges civil rights violations, false arrest, negligent hiring, supervision and retention, general negligence, civil conspiracy and abuse of process. Gordon seeks at least $7.5 million in damages.
A Garco representative did not immediately reply to a request for comment on the suit brought Sept. 23.
According to Gordon’s suit, he went to a drive-through at a McDonald’s on La Brea Avenue in the Mid-Wilshire District last Nov. 23 and asked an employee about the price of a hash brown and received the response, “What’s the matter, you can’t afford it, N-word?,” the suit alleges.
The on-duty manager refused to take a complaint from Gordon and instead showed him a McDonald’s corporate number on her phone, according to the suit, which further states that the manager allegedly accused the plaintiff of trying to steal the device.
One McDonald’s employee contacted police and said Gordon brandished a firearm, the suit states. But officers who arrived later searched the plaintiff and did not find a gun on his person, but did locate one beneath the driver’s seat of his car, according to the suit, which further states that Gordon is licensed to carry a concealed weapon.
“Based solely on the false allegation that plaintiff had stolen the manager’s cellphone, police officers arrested him,” according to the suit, which adds that the District Attorney’s Office later declined to file charges.
“The accusations against plaintiff (by the McDonald’s employees) were false, malicious and motivated in substantial part by racial animus,” according to the suit, which does not criticize the actions of the officers.
Gordon has suffered reputational harm and emotional distress and he also had a temporary loss of liberty because of the McDonald’s employees’ conduct, the suit alleges.