Teen found Not Guilty of Disorderly Conduct for McDonald's Rap
A Utah teenager was found not guilty of disorderly conduct after his "Fastfood Freestyle" rap at a McDonald's drive-thru.
Spenser Dauwalder, 18, attempted to place his order by rapping into the speaker a McDonald's drive-thru and was cited with an infraction for imitating a popular YouTube video "I need a double cheeseburger and hold the lettuce," the Associated Press reports.
The video below shows the Fast Food Freestyle rap that Dauwalder allegedly tried to imitate when he placed his order at the drive-thru window. He was trying to copy the kid in the YouTube video.
Attorneys presented evidence of Dauwalder including surveillance footage at the restaurant. Employees said Dauwalder was asked to order or leave because he was holding up the line.
At that point, prosecutors said he "acted in an angry, threatening, tumultuous manner" and sped recklessly out of the parking lot.
Dauwalder pleaded not guilty and opted to fight the disorderly conduct citation.
In general, disorderly conduct is a broad term describing conduct that disturbs the peace or endangers the morals, health, or safety of a community.
The punishment for disorderly conduct is usually fixed by statute. Under most statutes the penalty consists of a fine, imprisonment, or both. Some statutes provide that an accused cannot be imprisoned for disorderly conduct unless he or she has been given an opportunity to pay a fine and has defaulted on the payment
In this case however, the judge ruled in Dauwalder's favor and found him not guilty, saying the activity did not rise to the level of disorderly conduct.
But Kasey Wright, who represented the city, said the ruling was disappointing.
The case was never about the rapping but instead about disruption of the business and alleged threatening behavior toward a restaurant employee, Wright said.
- McPrankster found not guilty in Utah rap case (Associated Press)
- Rapping Your McDonald's Order Is Not A Crime (The Consumerist)
- Disorderly Conduct (FindLaw)