Gerald Harrington: McDonald’s Owner Refuses Service To Teens After Altoona, Pennsylvania Lock Out

Gerald Harrington, owner of a Pennsylvania McDonald’s has banned the local teens from his establishment. WND Money is reporting now that Gerald Harrington has had it with the local unruly teenagers that have frequented his restaurant and has decided to kick them out for good unless they have an adult with them.

Harrington’s ban on teens at the McDonald’s stemmed from an earlier disruption that had occurred there the day before. The exact details on the case are sketchy. What is known is that about 40 teens showed up to the McDonald’s and were locked out.

Mccall is reporting that just as Gerald Harrington tried to lock out the angry mob and snap a photo of the teens with his cell phone, a group of young people knocked the phone from Harrington’s hand and attacked him. At least three teens were charged with assault in the attack.

Since then, Gerald Harrington has placed a sign on the door of the McDonald’s telling teens that the next time they try to eat at his McDonald’s, they must have an adult with them at all times.

Several people in the community are unhappy with the sign banning the kids and believe that the owner is a “right wing conservative hater.” Others say that the owner is acting within his right, and that he has a right to protect himself and the business that he has worked so hard for.

Here are just a few comments.

“When you offer anything for free such as Wi-Fi you tend to attract the dregs of society. I think this policy is very sensible. McDonalds is a business, not a daycare. I think a sensible adjustment to the policy would be to require a minimum purchase of $6 per patron under the age of nineteen. That would keep the trouble away and not keep out the decent teens who are actually there to get something to eat.”

“MINORPHOBIA! MINORPHOBIA! More discrimination from right wing conservative haters. Take him to court, sue him, and make him lose his business. Or at least post about a thousand comments on yelp accusing him of everything from bias to serving sour milkshakes.”

“Ever since the East man’s sold to the Harrington Corporation this business has gone down hill. I can’t remember the last time I received my order correctly.”

Gerald Harrington owns at least four McDonald’s restaurants in the Pennsylvania area, according to his company website. The incident occurred at the Altoona location. Although, customers had issued complaints at another location because some of the community’s little league kids were not allowed to participate in a tag day, according to one customer’s complaint.

“Is what I have heard about your business not letting our Little League guys participate in ‘Tag Day’? If so, you have surely disappointed and let down a lot of people in this area. The previous owners would have never made a decision like this.”

According to public records, Gerald Harrington is 47-years-old and has lived in Erie and Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania. A glance at his Facebook page shows that he is a fan of Gun Owners of America, NRA’s American Rifleman, Stand With Arizona Against Illegal Immigration, The Heritage Foundation, and Duck Dynasty.

A Twitter page for Gerald Harrington describes him as a McDonald’s owner, husband, and father “just living the dream.”

[Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images]