An Atlanta woman is suing the popular fast food chain Popeyes after she claims three employees assaulted her for informing them they got her order wrong.
According to court documents filed at the Fulton County State Court, Denetra Dawson has named all three restaurant employees, Tenister Evans, the restaurant manager; her daughter, Zariah Evans; a niece, Tenice Taylor, and the restaurant’s corporate owner as defendants.
At a press conference Friday, Dawson, alongside her attorneys, said she is still attempting to recover following the traumatic experience, which has taken a toll on her physically and psychologically, she said.
She said it all unfolded in September 2022 when three employees left the establishment, opened her vehicle’s door and attacked her while she sat at a drive-thru window at 839 Cleveland Ave in Atlanta’s southwest area. She said they repeatedly punched her, ripped out her hair and caused spinal injuries because she wanted them to fix her incorrect order.
“I simply went to get food for my kids,” Dawson said Friday. “Why me? I didn’t even think I was going to make it back to my kids.”
One of Dawson’s attorneys, Mawuli Davis, added that she has since been left “traumatized. And there are a lot of people that are going to need to be held responsible for this. Ms. Dawson went out to simply get this 12-piece box of chicken. And what ends up happening is that they get the order wrong. She tries to correct them over the speaker. They’re not paying any attention. She pulls up to the window. At the window, she’s trying to communicate. ‘Hey, you got this wrong.’ They get upset. They call her the B-word. They start raising their voice.”
Dawson then said the employees suddenly ran outside and jumped her while inside her vehicle at the drive-thru line.
The lawsuit states the plaintiff thinks the employees were upset because she was holding up the line by requesting they fix her order, adding that in some cases, employees at fast food restaurants are penalized if customers are kept waiting in drive-thru too long.
“They decided they were going to fix that problem by attacking Ms. Dawson and getting her to move, or forcing her to move her car,” Davis said. “And they’re all converging on her, beating her, punching her, scratching her, attempting to choke her.”
Dawson said they only stopped assaulting her after pulling out a gun. She was later taken to a local hospital to be treated for injuries. Meanwhile, the three employees were charged with misdemeanors.
“I just pray that this, what happened to me, don’t happen to no one else,” Dawson said, “and I get the proper justice and bring some light to my situation so it won’t happen to no one else.”
