I’m not surprised there’s been a divide over the incident at a Tim Hortens in the Fort Wayne, Ind. area. Earlier this month, Anita Grayson, 75, died of a suspected heart attack after a fight with store employees started. Grayson’s family and city officials have spoken out against the restaurant and its employees.
But security footage paints a different picture and most people seem to be on the side of the employees. The incident is reported to have happened as Grayson was upset over a wrong order. That is a wrong order of coffee. She is shown going into the restaurant and becoming belligerent and trying to push past a 17-year-old employee and the 20-year-old manager. Then the manager puts her hand on Grayson’s arm to push her back. At this point, Grayson appears to strike the manager.
And the manager strikes back leading to Grayson grabbing a piece of the manager’s hair pulling it out along with pieces of her skin attached. Then after the altercation ends as the authorities are called, Grayson puts the hair with the skin attached in her purse. When authorities arrived she was reportedly having a medical issue and died afterwards.
I think this shows how the tide is slowly turning in favor more of workers than customers. Despite what people think, restaurants, stores and especially bars are private places. They have a right to refuse service to anyone who may disruptive. How is this any different than a bouncer throwing out an angry or drunk person? If customers aren’t allowed behind the counter, then they are NOT allowed behind the counter.
I’ve worked in retail and it amazes me how people think they can just walk into a breakroom or storage room. Entitled is the word that has been getting a lot of use over the last decade or so. But it’s mostly used in a derogatory way toward younger people, non-white people and those of liberal/leftist views.
But the door swings both ways. Older people always talk about respect as if they automatically deserve it because of their age. Yet it’s earned.
Since Covid, service workers have finally put a stop to the abuse they’ve been getting especially since mobile orders have increased causing places to get slammed even though they may not look busy due to lack of physical customers. And I don’t blame them. The wrong coffee order which can’t be that serious doesn’t constitute violence.
Now the defenders are pulling out the “Well maybe she had a mental issue” card. However this isn’t something we should always say. Sometimes people are just jerks if they’re 17 or 71. Some online chatter says Grayson has always been abusive. Just because Madea does it, doesn’t make it real. And Michael Douglas’ D-Fens would be detained and arrested by the police for pulling out a firearm.
I think the reason so many people hate self-checkout is because they don’t have the pompous belief they are superior over the cashier. Why does it irritate so many people if a cashier sits in a chair? A lot of jobs are at desks where people sit for hours. I’ve had a few of them.
And since it’s 2026, more people make orders online as well as DoorDash and UberEats deliveries. This incident happened around 8 a.m. local time so they probably had been slammed with orders. Therefore mistakes can be made. All it would’ve taken was a simple explanation with the right order and maybe a free voucher for another cup of coffee. Or maybe she did get the right order but felt putting up a scene would’ve got her something free. If she had a heart condition, why is she drinking coffee? If she’s has dementia, why is she driving?
I’ve dealt with customers who tried to get free stuff or regular items at reduced prices. When I worked at the K-Mart garden center, an older woman would come in complaining that about the quality of a potted plant and wanted a discount to only pay “a dollar.” She was nice at first but when she didn’t get her way, she would become rude and angry and scream at her husband “George!” who probably did have dementia and didn’t know where he was. She came in at least three times I remember always complaining over the cost of something.
Another time when I was working in the newspaper business, a man who was known for his shady behavior said that he had paid for an ad and talked to me about it. But he didn’t have a receipt. I know he was lying. The bosses I think knew but still allowed him a free ad. I didn’t work in advertising and rarely took any info on classifieds. There had been a previous incident of an advertising rep taking a cash payment, giving a receipt but not putting in the order.
So, yeah, I often dealt with people who wanted to get me demoted or even fired just because they felt they could.
Some people are just that way. There’s no rhyme nor reason to it. They’re used to getting their way they think the rules don’t apply to them.
My first year in college, two guys got into a fight in my dorm. I never got the full details but the one who instigated it was expelled from the dorm and prohibited from entering as a guest. Yet he continued for a while to hang out with friends until a residential advisor spotted him and told him he has to leave immediately. Otherwise the university police will be called.
Actions have consequences. The Tim Hortens restaurant has had to close for an indefinite time as the franchise owner says it will reopen eventually. However currently people are out of work.
Even if charges are filed (which is highly unlikely) it can set a precedent no business owners want. Also, Indiana, like many other states, have Stand Your Ground and the Castle Doctrine on the law ¹books. It appears Grayson was advancing on the workers after she had been told to leave. At that point, the manager could consider her a threat.
We applaud gas station cashiers who stand up to robbers. How is this any different? Sounds to me like her family is seeking a lawsuit.
The autopsy is reported to take at least another month. But in the court of public opinion, a lot of people seem to see Grayson as the aggressor. And many black people aren’t buying the use of the race card this time.
What do you think? Please comment.
Zane Says 