Racist tirade at McDonald’s leads to hate crime charge, California officials say

A 40-year-old woman told she’d have to leave a California McDonald’s over COVID-19 dining restrictions exploded in a racist tirade and attacked workers, prosecutors say.

Alena Jenkins of San Jose faces a hate crime charge in the March 20 clash at a Mountain View restaurant, the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office says in a news release. She’s also charged with battery.

“Targeting people because of their perceived ethnicity is not just a shame, it’s a crime,” said District Attorney Jeff Rosen in the release. “There is no excuse for hatred.”

An employee repeatedly told a mask-free Jenkins that inside dining was not permitted at McDonald’s due to coronavirus precautions in the 6:45 a.m. incident and asked her to go outside, prosecutors say.

“Go ahead and call the cops,” Jenkins told the worker, adding a profane racial slur, prosecutors say. When the employee called 911, Jenkins shoved a plexiglass divider and sign at the worker.

A manager also told Jenkins to leave, prompting her to call him a “stupid Mexican” and punch him on the arm and shoulder, prosecutors say.

Once police arrived, Jenkins continued to refer to the employees with racial slurs, calling them “dumb Mexicans … who don’t know how to speak English,” prosecutors say.

This story was originally published March 24, 2021 at 2:02 PM with the headline "Racist tirade at McDonald’s leads to hate crime charge, California officials say."