A woman who threw a burrito bowl at a Chipotle employee in Parma, Ohio, has been ordered by a judge to work in a fast food restaurant for two months as part of her sentence.
The woman, identified as 39-year-old Rosemary Hayne, was caught on video hurling her food at employee Emily Russell on September 5, 2023. The video, which was posted on Reddit, shows Hayne complaining about the way her order was made and then throwing the bowl in Russell’s face at close range.
Hayne was charged with one count of assault and pleaded no contest in court on December 6, 2023. She apologized to Russell, but said she was unhappy with her order and felt disrespected by the staff.
The Sentence
Parma Municipal Court Judge Timothy Gilligan gave Hayne a unique sentence that he said was meant to teach her a “sense of empathy” and to “deter others from this type of behavior”. He sentenced her to 180 days in jail, with 90 days suspended. He also told her that he would give her 60 days jail credit if she agreed to work at least 20 hours per week at a fast food restaurant for two months.
“This is not ‘Real Housewives’ of Parma,” Judge Gilligan told Hayne, according to WJW. “You don’t get to throw food at people because you’re unhappy with the way they’re doing their job.”
Hayne agreed to the deal and said she would be getting a fast food job. She also has to pay a $250 fine and court costs.
The Victim
Russell, the employee who had the bowl thrown at her, quit her job at Chipotle over the incident, according to WJW. She said she suffered from anxiety and depression after the attack and felt humiliated by the viral video.
A GoFundMe page, set up to support Russell, has raised over $1,300 in donations. Russell wrote in a Facebook post, “It doesn’t matter if it’s a minimum wage worker, the biggest boss in the company, a person waiting for the bus on the road… no human being should ever be treated in any wrong way.”
Chipotle has not responded to Business Insider’s request for comment.