Local News in Brief : Guards at Fast-Food Restaurants Urged
Three shootings during the last week at fast-food restaurants with drive-up windows has Compton officials calling for armed guards to patrol the parking lots.
“Life is much more valuable than the few pennies it takes to hire these guards,’ Mayor Walter Tucker said at a press conference to announce that the City Council today would consider an ordinance requiring the restaurants to hire guards.
A 17-year-old Lynwood girl was killed early Monday morning while waiting in line at the drive-up window of a Taco Bell after she hesitated to hand over her ring to an armed robber. In separate incidents Saturday and Wednesday, men were shot in the leg outside a nearby McDonald’s.
McDonald’s has a full-time security guard inside the restaurant, but he is not required to go outside, said Councilman Maxcy Filer, who will introduce the ordinance at an emergency council session.
“We have done it before . . . at clubs, dance halls, you name it,” Filer said when asked whether the city can legally require guards at the estimated 18 drive-up restaurants in the city.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
