Dad Faces Charges For Ordering 4-Year-Old To Shoot Cops At McDonald's In Utah
There are no words that can properly describe the horror.
Twitter / Youtube A Utah man has been arrested after allegedly flashing a gun outside of a McDonald’s in Utah.
27-year-old Sadaat Johnson, who was driving with both his 4-year-old and 3-year-old at the time, is being charged in connection with a shooting that occured at the fast food chain reportedly involving a child.
Sadaat Johnson allegedly told his 4-year-old to shoot at Utah police in McDonald's.
Witnesses state that Johnson originally flashed his weapon when his order was incorrect at the fast-food restaurant. Police responded to the scene and attempted to get Johnson to comply with orders to come to the front of the restaurant.
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Police managed to get Johnson out of his vehicle without shooting and, in most cases, this would be the end of the story. Horrifyingly, police then saw a firearm begin to emerge from the vehicle.
The 4-year-old had a gun when his father allegedly told him to shoot at the police.
The child then opened fire, causing the officers to go for cover. None of the officers were killed and only one of them sustained minor injuries.
The police officers then managed to disarm and subdue the child without shooting back. The awning on the Mcdonald's was the only casualty.
Everyone at the scene was shocked, Unified Police Department Sheriff Rosie Rivera said of the incident, “This is a child who thought it was okay to pull a firearm and shoot that firearm at police. I’ve never seen anything like this in my 28 years.”
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Rivera also went on to say, “That a 4-year-old even knows how to utilize a firearm and point it at an officer and pull the trigger is incredibly disturbing.”
Thankfully, few injuries were sustained and the child was successfully disarmed.
Sergeant Melody Cutler weighed in on the horrific possibility that police officers might have needed to use deadly force on a child, saying, “Even the thought crossing their mind of having to use deadly force on a child is disturbing… For someone to even put their child in that position is so disturbing. I can’t even wrap my head around it, how that even happens.”
The Unified Police Department chalked the incident up to a wider "campaign" against police, saying in a statement, “This is a sad day for law enforcement and our community. To have an adult think it is okay to encourage a four-year-old to pull a firearm and shoot at police illustrates how out of hand the campaign against police has gotten.”
Johnson was arrested on charges of felony child abuse and threatening the use of a dangerous weapon. It’s unknown whether the children are with a guardian or a social worker at this time.
Johnson's motives remain a mystery at this time as neither he nor his family has publicly commented on the incident.
Dan O'Reilly is a writer who covers news, politics, and social justice. Follow him on Twitter.