McDonald's employees assist woman who mouths 'help me' in the drive thru

Authored by edition.cnn.com and submitted by joesoldlegs

(CNN) When a woman walked up to the counter of a McDonald's in Lodi, California, the employees likely expected her to order a Big Mac or large fries. Instead, she begged them to help her.

The woman told an employee to call 911, gave them her license plate number and asked them to hide her, San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office said in a Facebook post

A police investigation would later reveal that she was traveling with a man who had a history of abusing her. That day, he had threatened her with a firearm and demanded that she drive him to see his family.

After using the McDonald's restroom, the woman tried to approach the counter again to make an order, police said. But the man she was traveling with stopped her and demanded that she use the drive-thru.

Even in the drive-thru, the woman continued to send distressed messages to employees, mouthing "help me" through the window to a restaurant worker, police said.

blove135 on December 27th, 2019 at 18:49 UTC »

It doesn't say in the article but I wonder if the employees told the guy it would be a few minutes on his fries to buy a few minutes for the police to get there. Sir, please pull into parking spot #1, it's gonna be a few minutes on those fries.

tweakingforjesus on December 27th, 2019 at 17:47 UTC »

The result:

Police found a stolen firearm in the trunk of the vehicle and arrested the man.

He faces four felony charges, including criminal threats, stolen property and possession of a firearm as prohibited person. His bail is set at $360,000.

Edit: At today's hearing the judge raised his bail to $1M.

podgress on December 27th, 2019 at 16:11 UTC »

The woman chose the right place to ask for help.

The Golden State Restaurant Group, which owns the McDonald's location she went to, has certified each of its restaurants as a "Safe Place."

The Safe Place program is a national youth and prevention program for "young people in need of immediate help and safety," says the restaurant group's website.

The program creates a network of locations, including schools, fire stations, libraries and businesses, that display distinctive yellow and black safe place signs. Young people can go to locations with these signs in times of crisis to find a secure place to stay and be connected with a youth service agency or shelter, the program website says.

Bravo to the Safe Place program, the Golden State Restaurant Group, the police and especially to the employees who listened, learned and acted appropriately!