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Watch: McDonald’s employee attacked by man over a straw. She fought back
A video of the incident has gone viral with over three million views
A video of a McDonald’s employee fighting back after a customer grabbed her shirt and tried to pull her over the counter has gone viral on social media. The video, posted on Facebook, shows the woman punching the man after he attacked her following an altercation over a straw. The man was eventually arrested by police.
The nearly one-minute-long video opens to show the man, later identified as Daniel Taylor, 40, arguing with the employee standing behind the counter. Brenda Biandudi, who recorded the incident on her phone, told CNN that Taylor was upset over not finding straws at the condiment station.
“She told him that it’s the law now that they’re not supposed to have the straws in the lobby,” Biandudi told The Washington Post. “He said there’s no such law.”
According to a new law, effective from January 1, 2019 in St Petersburg, plastic straws can only be given to customers upon request. A complete ban on single-use plastic straws takes effect in January 2020.
When the argument between the two heated up, Biandudi pulled out her phone to record the scene unfolding before her.
“I looked at my camera and I thought I may need to record this since there were so few people in the store. As soon as he approached her, I hit record. He reached across and tried to grab her and hit her,” she told CNN.
However, the woman, identified as Yasmine James, turned the tables on the man and fought back, punching him repeatedly.
The video was shared online by Facebook user TJ Biandudi on Monday. It has since collected over 3.3 million views and 67,000 shares on Facebook.
Taylor was eventually arrested and charged with two counts of simple battery, reports ABC Action News. He reportedly kicked another employee in the stomach on his way out.
