The staff at an Olive Garden in Kansas City asked a police officer to leave during his own birthday lunch on Sunday. According to KMBC, officer Michael Holsworth was waiting for his family to arrive at the restaurant, dressed in full uniform and with his gun because he was on duty. While he was sitting inside of the Olive Garden, a staff member allegedly asked him to leave, telling the officer they do "not allow guns inside the restaurant."
Holsworth notes in a Facebook post that he thought the employee was joking at first and asked her, "Are you serious?" The employee supposedly said "yes," and then asked him to "please leave." The officer tells KMBC that he has never been asked to leave a restaurant before and says he wrote about the situation on Facebook because he did not "want other officers to be subjected to the same embarrassing situation."
The Kansas City Star writes that the president of Olive Garden personally called Holsworth to apologize for the incident. A spokesperson for the chain says that the employee "clearly made a mistake" and that her behavior is "unacceptable." The spokesperson adds: "Olive Garden welcomes members of law enforcement all the time in the restaurants. We love serving them. They serve our community. The least we can do is provide them a great meal." There is no word on whether or not the employee has been fired. Eater has reached out to the Olive Garden location and to the chain's corporate offices for comment.
It's hard to tell if this particular incident was a result of a misunderstanding about a restaurant's open carry policy or had something to do with the fear of everyday citizens in the face of an increase in violent gun crime in recent years. In this case, it's unlikely that the Olive Garden server in question intended to disrespect the officer.
Law enforcement personnel appear to be having a hard time at restaurants across the country due to growing tensions about gun rights. Last week, three parole officers were asked to leave a T.G.I. Friday's in Tennessee because they were carrying their service weapons. The officers — who were on duty — were told that they were "not allowed to have guns in the restaurant." Just a few weeks before, a Waffle House in Kentucky refused to serve a National Guardsman unless he left his gun in the car. The franchise owner had reason to refuse service in this case: He says that the solider had been involved in at least one altercation at the restaurant before.
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LawyerLady
I can explain it to you, but I can't understand it for you.
See. Now the police are the bad guys. Thank you media and thugs and all you knee jerk reacting librals.
You know, there was a time when the police was respected and they would get discounts or free meals cause when they sat in your restaurant, you knew you were the most safe. They were like the best deterrent ever.
Now they are being criminalized for doing their jobs.
So sad.
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A flock of flirting flamingos is pure, passionate, pink pandemonium-a frenetic flamingle-mangle-a discordant discotheque of delirious dancing, flamboyant feathers, and flamingo lingo.
They are asking the Police to leave? That's ridiculous. I think that a bill should be introduced that Police cannot be asked to leave establishments if armed.
Oh my stars, When my brother was a police officer the local restaurants gave them free lunch/dinner because they were so appreciative of the job they were doing patrolling the streets. Common sense is a rare thing anymore.
Wow. I actually know a Kansas City police officer, the nicest guy you could ever hope to meet.
This is ridiculous. It's a policeman, not some dong walking around with a shotgun.
There is a fast food place here that kicked out the police, in uniform, twice (it didn't make national news though). The manager was fired and the company apologized but the second time was it. The damage was done. The police used to do several courtesy drive bys to keep loiterers away, and they stopped. Now the fast food place is complaining about all the business they're are losing because the loiterers scare people away. The police still do a drive by, but its not as much as they used to.
Someone said they can thank their employees for that.
When I read this I immediately thought of Kim Davis and her refusal to issue marriage licenses based on her personal religious beliefs. Now this individual asking a police officer to leave and I have an idea that the individual is against guns, not Olive Garden. Are we going to see a spate of people causing disruptions due to their personal beliefs now? No, it does not say the individual is against guns, but I can think of no other reason to ask the officer to leave. Evidently the president of Olive Grove does not know of this policy, so I can only guess it is the policy of this individual....
As a couple of you have said, absolutely no common sense these days. But when people have strong feelings about something, common sense takes a back seat.
I think that slippery slope that we have been on is about to fall out from under us completely.
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A flock of flirting flamingos is pure, passionate, pink pandemonium-a frenetic flamingle-mangle-a discordant discotheque of delirious dancing, flamboyant feathers, and flamingo lingo.
It should be an arrestable offence to harrass an officer like that.
I was raised that the police yell you what to do. Not the other way around.
Stupidity.
My Canadian friend and I went to a street festival near the lake this weekend. There were a LOT of people carrying. She had a panic attack. Totally freaked out. She was probably safer then she had ever been...
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America guarantees equal opportunity, not equal outcome...
It should be an arrestable offence to harrass an officer like that. I was raised that the police yell you what to do. Not the other way around. Stupidity.
Me too.
I don't know when that changed.
I don't think it is for the better.
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A flock of flirting flamingos is pure, passionate, pink pandemonium-a frenetic flamingle-mangle-a discordant discotheque of delirious dancing, flamboyant feathers, and flamingo lingo.
What the hell is wrong with people? Asking a uniformed, on-duty, police officer to leave because he has his service weapon holstered on his hip? That's messed up.
What the hell is wrong with people? Asking a uniformed, on-duty, police officer to leave because he has his service weapon holstered on his hip? That's messed up.
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exactly
am glad the president stepped up and called the officer to apologize personally
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" the only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing. "--edmund burke
