Utah Restaurant Fires Cook for Anti-Cop Facebook Post, Draws Fire for Offering Free Meals to Cops
Jodi Dansie set up a Facebook page for Leslie's Family Tree restaurant in Santaquin, Utah, to inform customers about daily specials, and the page would get about 70 views per post for that reason, until a cook—on his own Facebook page—posted a photo suggesting the only good cop was a dead cop.
The cook was linked to the restaurant and its page was deluged with comments. The restaurant fired the cook, saying he had suggested the move himself, and went to its Facebook page to offer free meals for cops.
It didn't help draw attention away from the restaurant, as local news station KSL reports:
"This place gives free food to murderers and kidnappers just because they wear badges," one man posted.
A family member of Darrien Hunt – who was shot and killed by Saratoga Springs Police as he carried a samurai sword – even weighed in on the dispute.
Cindy Moss, an aunt to Hunt, blasted the restaurant's gesture on Facebook and in a subsequent interview with KSL.
"It makes me sick," she said Wednesday. "It seems so backward and messed up that people are rewarding the people who killed my nephew."
Moss acknowledged the work of "good police," but said she felt compelled to react because of what happened to Hunt.
"Like I said in my post, my sister is still trying to take care of her family, trying to keep her job, trying to mourn her son and still doesn't have enough money to pay for the burial of her son, and meanwhile they're feeding the people who are getting paid while they're on leave and they're now getting free meals," Moss said.
The business subsequently took down its response along with some additional posts, Dansie said, but a number of negative reviews remain because of the cook's post.
Prosecutors ruled the killing of Hunt justified earlier this week. Dansie says she's exasperated by all the outrage and is considering pulling the plug on the restaurant's Facebook page.
h/t Stanton Smith
