Just days after five Dallas Police were killed in a terror attack, prompting President Obama to call on Americans to respect law enforcement, a Washington State restaurant told local sheriff deputies paying their bill to stay away to “spread the word” to other cops.
In a Facebook posting that has drawn thousands of mostly shocked reactions, the Skagit County Sheriff said that the staff of Lucky Teriyaki north of Everett, Wash., told the deputies that customers felt uncomfortable with police sitting nearby.
Sheriff: Deputies asked not to dine at Washington restaurant https://t.co/rF9h9iCEa9
— National Sheriffs’ Association (@NationalSheriff) July 15, 2016
“I am not often speechless but today I was advised of an incident at the Lucky Teriyaki restaurant in Sedro-Woolley that completely took me by surprise. Particularly on the heels of the United We Stand by our Law Enforcement event that was such an overpowering show of appreciation for our deputies and officers serving Skagit County,” wrote Sheriff Will Reichardt on the official Facebook page.
“This afternoon 4 Skagit County Sheriff’s office deputies were finishing up lunch at Lucky’s. As 2 deputies went up to pay they were informed by the owner that he requested they not eat there anymore. They were told that other customers didn’t like law enforcement there. My chief deputy spoke to the owner to confirm this because he simply could not believe what he was hearing. The owner not only repeated the request but asked that we spread the word to other law enforcement that they were no longer welcome either,” he added.
The executive director of the National Sheriff’s Association said Friday that deputies and all law enforcement should be welcomed “with open arms,” not ‘dissed.
A subsequent news report on the incident suggested that there was a misunderstanding because the restaurant staff doesn’t speak English well.
But the department hasn’t update its post which included a note that the deputies will go elsewhere from now on for lunch breaks.
The department’s Facebook post was shared more than 23,000 times, and the National Sheriff’s Association, which has called this week a “National Week of Mourning” for the Dallas police, tweeted the post out.
Association Executive Director Jonathan Thompson told Secrets, “It’s their prerogative to choose who they serve. But our deputies will serve them if ever needed. Sheriff employees walk out their front door each day not knowing what harm might come to them. They’re amongst the most honorable and honest people in the world. They should be welcomed with open arms.”
Paul Bedard, the Washington Examiner’s “Washington Secrets” columnist, can be contacted at [email protected]
