McDonald’s customer claims cashier punched her over cheeseburger argument

In 2012, Gui Ying Shi went to a New York City McDonald’s with her son and ordered him a cheeseburger Happy Meal. The New York Post reports that when Ms. Shi saw that the meal had a hamburger and not a cheeseburger, she complained to cashier Marisol Acosta. It was then that Ms. Acosta allegedly punched her customer in the face.

(NYPost.com)
(NYPost.com)

Because she didn’t getting like punched in the face so much, Ms. Shi has taken McDonald’s to court over the matter. Her attorney, Lawrence Glynn, described what transpired in the Brooklyn Supreme Court trial, “She starts cursing at her, calls her stupid, said, ‘You need to learn to speak English.’ Ms. Acosta throws a left cross to Ms. Shi’s right jaw. Knockout! Knocks out a tooth.”

Glynn, on behalf of Ms. Shi was arguing that the McDonald’s location is liable for what Acosta did because, “none of the three managers present tried to stop the violence.” Defense attorney Michael Stonberg said it wasn’t a “punch,” but rather more of a lunge or slap.” He also said that Acosta was not “authorized” by the restaurant to hit customers, so why would the restaurant be accountable for her actions?

Acosta was immediately fired and then was charged with assault. As previously mentioned, this has been ongoing since 2012. In June of 2013, New York’s Supreme Court’s Appellate Division wrote (pdf) that Ms. Shi had not established that Acosta was acting within the scope of her employment, and that Ms. Shi had not provided sufficient evidence that the McDonald’s location should have known that Acosta was the kind of person who would hit a customer.

More info: New York Post