Deputy Investigated Burger King Servers Over Wrong Food Order
Jason Platt, a Sheriff's deputy from Florida, is making the streets safe by launching criminal investigations into wrong Burger King orders.
If you ever ordered a Whopper Jr. with cheese, but ended up with a disgusting Whopper Jr. without cheese, Platt is your man.
Platt landed himself a police department suspension when he investigated servers at a local Florida Burger King establishment after they accidentally got his wife's order wrong, reports The Ledger.
Not only did he ask for the driver's license information for the drive-through attendant and the manager of the fast food restaurant, he called his partner, another deputy, to assist him in the "investigation." His partner declined to help, The Ledger Reports.
All this is after the local Burger King manager offered Platt's wife a free meal for screwing up her order.
Platt was suspended for 16 hours for abusing his position of authority.
Police are supposed to investigate crimes. Was a wrong Burger King order a crime? Did it necessitate spending taxpayer's dollars (he was on duty at the time) to investigate a possible wrong order at a fast food restaurant - after management had already offered to compensate with a free meal?
While police generally enjoy wide authority in carrying out their duties, they do not have absolute authority over people. Police misconduct can infringe upon a person's civil rights, and cases of false arrest, malicious prosecution, and excessive force by police have made headlines for years.
Sheriff's Deputy Jason Platt, hear this: your badge does not give you full reins to investigate everything you want. And, if someone screws up you, or your wife's, Burger King order, just let it go next time.
Related Resources:
- Deputy suspended over Burger King beef (UPI)
- Click it and Chick it: SCHP Tries Fast Food Giveaways (FindLaw's Legally Weird)
- Help! Chicken McNuggets Emergency! Latreasa Goodman Makes Fast Food 911 Call, Gets Citation (FindLaw's Common Law)
- Police Misconduct and Civil Rights (FindLaw)