McDonald's Beat Down: UPDATE! Victim Speaks!

 

The Baltimore Sun is continuing it's coverage of the assault of a transgender woman at a Baltimore McDonald's last week.  The Smoking Gun has also updated some information on the attackers in this case.  More after the break!




The victim, Chrissy Lee Polis admits she was drunk when she went into that McDonald's to use the bathroom, and while that might have helped cause the incident, it is no excuse.  She also says this isn't the first time she's had trouble after changing genders.  Reports of other attacks and even sexual assaults, though no details of these previous incidents are reported.  She says all this attention might have a negative effect on getting a job and just getting on with her life and that, "it's like coming out of the closet all over again."

Unsurprisingly:

Polis said she plans to take legal action against the restaurant.
"Anyone in my predicament should not be afraid to walk the streets," Polis said. "They should not have to go into a restaurant and get gawked at and made fun of. They shouldn't be afraid to leave the house. It's just wrong."

I think she might have a case, since the employees actions (and lack there of) are all caught on film.  Speaking of actions:

The Smoking Gun reports that one of the attackers has a history of attacks like this:

Teonna Monae Brown, 18, was charged with two assault counts for allegedly attacking Danielle Dower, 38, last July. In October, a Baltimore County judge ruled that charges would not be further pursued against Brown, according to court records, which do not further explain that “nolle prosequi” decision.
[Update: Baltimore County State's Attorney Scott Shellenberger told TSG that the criminal counts against Brown were dropped at the victim’s request.]

The details of the previous attack are quite interesting and sound familiar:

In a handwritten police statement, Dower said that she had left the McDonald’s with her two daughters when Brown confronted her, asking “Did you call me ugly?” Though Dower said she had not, Brown “kept trying to badger us.” At one point, Dower said, the teenager “pushed me in the back.” After Dower pushed back, Brown “took her fist and threw a punch to my face.”
As the pair scuffled, Dower said, Brown hit her in the back with an umbrella and “pulled my wig off my head.”
Saying that, “I wanted to get my kids to safety,” Dower went with her children to a nearby shopping center. Brown and her friends, Dower added, followed behind.
As Dower called 911, two females grabbed her daughter by the hair and dragged the teenage girl across the floor. “I had to stop talking to the operator, get on top of my daughter and protect her while trying to fight off those girls,” Dower stated.

 What does this girl do?  Just hang out at McDonald's and start fights?  With other "friends" as well.  Talk about a pack mentality.  This incident gets more and more messed up as the details come out.  Currently the Attorney General's office is investigating and awaiting all information before seeing if Hate Crime charges are warranted.

I shall update again as I learn more.