Stacy Talbert, who has become known across social media as “McMuffin Cop,” has spoken out about her now-viral drive-thru meltdown.
“I’m not bitching. I think that shit’s funny,” Talbert told BuzzFeed News in a phone interview Thursday, making light of the social media taunting. “‘Cop Karen’ — whoever did that, that’s funny. ‘Molly McMuffin,’ someone called me. That’s funny! I’d make money if I was that funny.”
Days ago, Talbert filmed herself crying following a botched McDonald’s order after completing her overnight shift. The restaurant’s employees instructed the officer that she needed to pull her car aside to wait for her order. She feared that her food had been tampered with.
“I’m not going to accuse anyone, but it was sketchy,” she said.
However, Talbert claims that the tears were not just a result of an incorrect order but more so the fear that she faces as a member of law enforcement every day.
“It really had nothing to do with McDonald’s and the food. That was just what triggered it,” she said. “This feeling we feel in law enforcement constantly. You’re always looking, we’re arching our necks, to make sure everything is safe not just for you, but for everyone else. There are times I wish I could just be normal and not have to feel like that.”
“Everyone completely lost the point except for law enforcement. We all feel that way except I voiced it.”
Once an employee brought her the coffee that she had ordered, but not the food, Talbert grew even more suspicious and told the worker not to bother bringing the food out. Talbert told BuzzFeed that while she had no definitive proof that her food had been tampered with, she was not taking any chances.
“I don’t believe that they were or were not,” she said. “I am telling you I have no idea of that, and I didn’t take it to find out.”
Talbert’s video was triggering to many due to its similarities to a case just one day earlier of two New York police unions who falsely accused the employees at a Shake Shack restaurant of poisoning officers. Detectives would later conclude that the allegations were false.
On Wednesday, the McDonald’s restaurant’s franchise owners, Gary and Jill Stanberry, told BuzzFeed News that while they offered Talbert an apology for her poor experience, they also defended their staff against the allegations of food tampering.
“We are happy to report that the officer was never denied service and also shared positive feedback on the employee with whom she interacted,” said restaurant owners Gary and Jill Stanberry in a statement. “As a locally owned and operated business, we work hard every day to treat all of our employees and customers with dignity and respect.”
