Teen Pleads Guilty In McDonald’s Transgender Beatdown Case

Posted by Kevin Farrell on Aug 9, 2011 in Crime | 31 comments

Crissy Lee Polis, 22, being dragged across a McDonald's floor by Teonna Brown, 18

Hey, remember the two girls that beat a transgender woman into a seizure while McDonald’s employees hyucked and hawed about? Oh, and that other employee totally filmed the whole thing and put the video on YouTube? And that lady came to the victim’s aid and we all cried a little because THANK GOD not all people are the worst?

Yeah, us too.

Anyway, 19-year-old Teonna Monae Brown is headed to the slammer for a long, long time after pleading guilty to one count of first-degree assault, and one hate crime charge. The combined sentencing for the charges is 35 years behind bars, though she is expected to serve between five and ten because she is a first time offender (i.e. She’s only been caught on film beating the crap out of one, critically injured trans woman before).

Brown’s 14-year-old accomplice admitted guilt in identical charges, but has been sentence to a juvenile detention center because of her age.

Baltimore Sun reports:

The attack brought attention nationwide to the plight of transgender people, with thousands signing online petitions and holding rallies. Soon after, Gov. Martin O’Malley said he would work with lawmakers on legislation to provide more protections for transgender people; such a measure failed during this year’s legislative session.

Brown’s lawyer, Timothy Knepp, said his client “would be a very good candidate for probation.” He called the assault a “once-in-a-lifetime” incident that “will forever shape her future.”

“I’m going to ask the court to allow Teonna to go home with her mother. She has been locked up, imprisoned, since the day of the incident. She has a great deal of remorse,” he said.

Vicky Thoms, 55, a bystander who said she intervened in what she feared would be a fatal beating and was struck, also attended the plea hearing Thursday.

“In all my life I’ve never seen anything like this, and I never expected to. You see that kind of stuff on TV shows, but not in real life. In fact, I’ve never seen anything that bad even on TV shows, but maybe in horror movies,” Thoms said.

Crissy Polis, the victim beaten to a pulp in the McDonald’s by this so-called “very good candidate for parole”, is expected to speak at Brown’s sentencing.

Do you think five to ten years in jail is long enough for this crime?

http://www.facebook.com/claudia.kenworthy Claudia Kenworthy

justice
http://www.facebook.com/people/Julien-Guévremont/100001018464985 Julien Guévremont

i know she did something horrible, but she’s still 18. 10 to 15 years would be enough i think.
http://www.facebook.com/Hamilin89 Thomas David Hamilton

HELL NO 5 or 10 years is not enough, give them the max prison sentence for this cause you watch they WILL do it again and next time there may not be a camera nor a guardian angle with one heck of a heart.

http://www.facebook.com/people/Cobalt-Blaze/100000556002895 Cobalt Blaze

if that ever happened personally id see about going there myself to do it to her XD would show her a thing or two about respect.

http://www.facebook.com/musiclover1991 Charlene Kathryn Gorman

No it isn’t enough. She beat a woman into seizure because she is a small minded bigot. She should be there for her full term and her 14 year old teenie-bopper tag-a-long should be given just as much time in prison. She wants to act like a “big girl” she can be treated as one. Full sentences for both in my opinion. No parole!

http://www.facebook.com/stephen.belt Stephen Belt

I totally agree with every thing you said Charlene!

Anonymous

I’d like to see these people made examples of–to convey the message that we’re serious about the behavior being unacceptable. But, instead, in places like DC, the burden of proof seems to be on the victim(s) to convince the authorities that it was a hate crime, or even a crime of any kind. The more things change the more they stay the same.
Anonymous

I think that 35 years is enough if she behaves and dosnt beat anyone else (unlikely) she’ll only spend as many as 10 years, im fine with that too. It sends a clear message.
http://www.facebook.com/people/Shari-Denis/100000364417316 Shari Denis

Monsters!! They need longer and they need to charge the McDonalds employees with being
Accessories since they helped the girls get away.

http://www.facebook.com/people/Cobalt-Blaze/100000556002895 Cobalt Blaze

Mcdonands should only be charged with these things i will list with reasons why and only cause i studied law.

failure to keep the peace: by having the employee just fired and allowing them to run rampant making videos of random stuff posibly including criminal activitys and refusing to deal with em aiding and abetting criminals and their behaviours by creating videos of said attack and posting it online instead of turning the content over to police for evidence in the crime.
Mcdonalds is barely even legible for being criminally charged in this kind of situation cept where single or multiple employees are concerned. the individual can seek more than compensation and possibly criminal charges layed against all involved including employees who stood by did nothing risked their job by being idiots and showing no sign of remorse for finding the content funny.

basically you dont know much hich i think you should go and study some things and not take the tools route in life learn all you can not what you thin you need no being lazy in life.

Anonymous

If you studied law, I’m the queen of Romania.

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=500798245 Dyan Edwards-Cagley

19 isn’t a child, and this wasn’t an accident. I can see leniency in the case of the 14 year old. That IS a child being led astray by the ADULT! 19 year old she was with. 10 years might be enough time, but 5 really isn’t.

http://www.facebook.com/people/Cobalt-Blaze/100000556002895 Cobalt Blaze

i totaly agree but some level of leniency should be used in the youths case but only a little even if she was led astray she full on willingly still acted on it acted all tough and such that i think she can take the medium punishment she should not have too much going for her but she can at least be charged with a crime that had adult intentions written all over it and have it added to her permanent record which in youths cases is almost non existant but in here case should be in existence due to the actions committed. time she gets plus record for life should be good enough.

Anonymous

Barely – remember this is about justice and not revenge.
I would like to know why the Mcworker was not charged with McAccessory to a crime. MCD corporate assured me in a non-form letter that that empoyee was fired – but why not subject to charges, or civil action by the victim?
http://www.facebook.com/people/Melissa-Maynard/100000275212383 Melissa Maynard

Do I want her to get more than 5-10? Yes. However, if she gets prison time at all I’ll be happy. I think 5 years in a place where SHE will be the one getting her ass whooped (among other things) is going to seem like a lifetime to her…as it should! I just hope the judge doesn’t go soft and give in to the fact that she’s a first time offender. Her crime has definitely shaped her future. It ruined it.

http://www.facebook.com/people/Cobalt-Blaze/100000556002895 Cobalt Blaze

even if she gets time it should never be limited due to first time offense its a very big crime she committed meaning she should have no first time offense rights at all. and this shows more than corruption in this issue, i say let a full time extended punishment be set as a reminder of how bad it can get for people who think they can act like she did and have very little karma bite back. she should be in jail for a lifetime tbh but then again thats not fair even then so id say an extensive 10-20 years added to the 30+ years she could spend to serve as a societal reminder that hate is a zero tolleration crime meaning penalty is max no questions asked no rights given etc.

http://www.facebook.com/people/Cobalt-Blaze/100000556002895 Cobalt Blaze

it shouldn’t matter what the victim says its been proven a hate crime as well as plead as guilty meaning regardless of first time offense no matter the age showing remorse should be held accountable through jail time no one has the right to first time offense rights if its such a bad crime hell it falls right into the same category as intended murder murder and a ton of other hellish crimes, she should go to jail for 40 -50 years not 35 max she deserves no rights until she repents with massive amount of actions.

i identify as trans and i believe protection acts do nothing let one sentence serve as a reminder to those who think that not caring if they will be jailed or other things olet them see what will happen if they try and think fear will stop the victims from giving them a lifetimes worth of grief and trouble. there needs to be a petition towards this to serve society a reminder that stuff like this is not tolerated what so ever.
http://www.facebook.com/jkirsch3 Joe Kirsch

In all honesty, McD’s did good AND bad by firing all the employees. As for criminally charging them, that’s a grey spot. You can’t just say, “OH WELL U SAW THIS SO YOU ARE ACCESSORY BECAUSE U DID NUTIN.” They were at work, which means double standards come in to play. Yes, you want to help them, but, you’re in McD’s uniform, which means, if you go and help, you’re making McD’s look bad by physically assaulting a person within your store, and, if you don’t help, you’re making McD’s look bad by doing absolutely nothing to help the poor girl. It’s a tough moral decision that not everyone can make, and, while I can honestly say that reassignment at another local McD’s store for all the employees would have been a better solution, so that none of the employees would have lost their jobs, it’s one of those things where in either case, there’s gonna be a slew of people upset at your decision.

http://www.facebook.com/people/Cobalt-Blaze/100000556002895 Cobalt Blaze

thats the problem with people tho even more so with the idiots who find it funny to record cause they believe things as the assaulter’s did which adds more to acessory which in turns proves that lack of charges shows just how little the store actualy does care and id say if they refuse the person service or any compensation from the store for not enforcing legal rights and responsibilitys in which case becomes no longer moral but personal the store should have no choice in the matter. this i believe.

http://www.facebook.com/jkirsch3 Joe Kirsch

Unfortunately, that’s how most stores run. Being as neutral as possible to stuff that happens inside of your store is good practice, but, in the end, it is normally never enough.

http://www.facebook.com/musiclover1991 Charlene Kathryn Gorman

How exactly does it make McD’s look bad. You (they) could have helped without “assulting” the two girls (because I don’t care how old the oldest one is, they are girls. Women behave with class and dignety, these two behaved like pre-pubesant middle school girls who just had their boyfriend ‘stolen’). Stepping in doesn’t mean getting physical, it means stopping something that is wrong in every sense of the word. Instead he sat behind the camera phone and egged it on even more. That is accessory. The man could have helped the 55 year old woman by holding one of them back… That isn’t assult, it wouldn’t make McD’s look bad, but he chose to go on his facebook and boohoo about how he was done wrong because of this because he was getting messages saying (the truth) that he was a bigot, and well he “isn’t a bigot.” The McD’s employees should have charges brought up against them but the victim stricks me as a forgiving person so I don’t see that happening. The fact that he just sat there, recorded it, and LAUGHED about it shows that he thinks the exact same way as those two girls do.

http://www.facebook.com/jkirsch3 Joe Kirsch

It makes the McD’s look bad in either case because you are in their uniform. While I worked at WalMart, I was told not to ever get into any altercations, physical or verbal, with any customers for two reasons; one, mainly to avoid lawsuit, and, two, because it makes WalMart look bad. Those two reasons are solely why almost all companies try and stay neutral as possible to any situation that happens to happen inside of one of their stores. Now, yes, I should have said that the man recording should be an accessory, but, again, it’s a big grey area. We can’t say anything about how one thing or another should happen, simply because, in the grey area for anything, there will always be a ton of people who disagree. On top of it being a grey area, throwing in the recorders actions and viewing them as on par with the girls is assuming, and, we all know what happens when you ASS|U|ME.

http://www.facebook.com/musiclover1991 Charlene Kathryn Gorman

I hardly see a gray area with the worker, but that’s me personally. It’s one of two things, be morally bankrupt and allow a violent assault to continue to happen (while laughing and egging it one) while I can prevent it and keep my job… Or I can lose my job that will deny me support for saving a life because it “makes them look bad” (Sorry, even in these hard economic times, I will not work for a company that is more about it image than it’s customers safety). It’s not a hard choice. I’m not assuming anything when saying that the viewer/recorder’s response to the attack is on par with those of the two girls because he was laughing about it and egging it on, even after the poor woman began to seizure. I’m sorry, but laughing while someone is being beaten, almost to death, doesn’t indicate that he would have been willing to help even if he could, which indicates to me that his thinking is as archaic as the two that actually did the beating.

http://www.facebook.com/jkirsch3 Joe Kirsch

That’s the problem in the court of law. “Oh he laughed in the video so he’s just like those girls and deserves the same punishment.” It’s “evidence”, but, it’s, in court, it’s not 100% proof that he has the same mindset.

And, again, the whole “Don’t fight with the customers to protect the company” thing was pretty well beaten into me when I worked for WalMart. I know it was wrong, but, with as much as they reminded me not to do it, think about it like this. If WalMart, the biggest of the big of companies, constantly reminds it’s own to not get into an altercation, which means it’s setting example for other companies to try and remain, again, neutral as possible.

Honestly, the loophole in all of this is to take off your McD’s shirt and just start wailing on whomever is beating the crap out of whomever.
http://www.facebook.com/jkirsch3 Joe Kirsch

That’s the problem in the court of law. “Oh he laughed in the video so he’s just like those girls and deserves the same punishment.” It’s “evidence”, but, it’s, in court, it’s not 100% proof that he has the same mindset.

And, again, the whole “Don’t fight with the customers to protect the company” thing was pretty well beaten into me when I worked for WalMart. I know it was wrong, but, with as much as they reminded me not to do it, think about it like this. If WalMart, the biggest of the big of companies, constantly reminds it’s own to not get into an altercation, which means it’s setting example for other companies to try and remain, again, neutral as possible.

Honestly, the loophole in all of this is to take off your McD’s shirt and just start wailing on whomever is beating the crap out of whomever.

Sakura Yumura

5-10 is nowhere near enough…she should serve the ENTIRE length and the underage accomplice should serve a similar term as well. This is 100% a hate crime and should be pushed as such…these moderate “slaps on the wrist” they’re giving offenders only degrades the hate crime laws that are in effect.
Anonymous

What amazes me (I just watched the video for the first time) is that the girls went back and back and back again to go after her. We have such a culture of thoughtless violence here in America. I lived abroad for 25 years, in several different countries, and nowhere did I see the kind of knee jerk, unthinking violence, physical or verbal, that we have here. These girls are not isolated examples. A normal response, if they didn’t understand what was going on, would be to find a manager, not start beating the crap out of someone. But anymore, violence is the first response for so many. And it’s getting worse.
http://www.facebook.com/people/Ben-Rogers/100000658065799 Ben Rogers

If prison will not change the way she thinks it is pointless regardless of how much time she is put away for. If there is no rehabilitation then we are simply following a revenge model for punishment. 5-10 years should be more then enough IF she learns not to HATE LGBT people, then she can look forward to rebuilding her life afterwards. If that doesn’t change her then what alternative do we have then capital punishment under Americas current legal system.
http://www.facebook.com/people/Anthony-N-Amador/100000669424960 Anthony N Amador

how can anyone be so ignorant.thank God that all people are not like these teens.
i hope and pray that their parents aren’t the ones who taught them how to hate and treat others this way.

http://www.facebook.com/musiclover1991 Charlene Kathryn Gorman

Unfortunately (in this case at least) children copy and learn from their parents, so in all likely hood that is exactly where they learned it

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Ian Michael Anderson

As a FTM post-transition person, I am appalled by this incident on so many levels. However, also as having served time in the correctional system…I have to agree that full term for either assailant would do nothing but inflame an already raging fire as most lock-up situations are homophobic by nature and the instituions themselves criminalize homosexuals or/sexual minorities. Inmates serving longer terms often become “instituionalized” and upon released violent criminals become an even bigger threat upon release. Furthermore, it has been my experience that perps involved in senselessly violent acts tend to spiral into worse offenses if given just a sentence rather then some sort of invention or therapy to deal with the socializtion that was the core of the act itself. Though I do not agree with a life term sentencing, thats not to say this should be passed with a slap on the wrist….but in my observation I think it is time to start with some sentencing alternatives…for example, making one do public service for the LGBT community where there is a positive exposure and maybe just maybe give them the opportunity to see us as the ppl we are rather then the mighty hand that smacked them down into life inmprisonment. Anger begets anger…and do we really think handling hate crimes with revenge will solve anything?
As for the corporate responsibilty of McDonalds and its employees….SHAME. I agree that accessory charges should be brought on the filmer of the incident and I am sure McDonalds is probably open for some sirt of civil liabilty the same as if you have an accident in there store, but publicty is our best weapon on this matter…who wants to spend money in a place that you can even feel safe with a room full of employees?

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