Taco Bell worker charged after shooting women over soda dispute

A customer dispute over a water cup turned into gunfire at a Taco Bell in West Palm Beach, leaving two women with minor injuries and a 20-year-old employee facing three felony assault charges.

Police identified the worker as D'Mari Patterson and said the shooting happened just before noon Monday at the Taco Bell on 45th Street and Military Trail. Investigators said the trouble began when three women came in asking for water, and one allegedly used the cup to get soda from the fountain. The argument escalated inside the restaurant, and Patterson fired shots, police said.

Two of the women were injured, one by a graze and the other by a direct hit, according to the reports. All three customers were able to leave the restaurant, get into a car, and drive themselves to a nearby hospital. One outlet said the confrontation and shooting were captured on cellphone video, adding a stark record to a scene that unfolded on the restaurant floor in the middle of the lunch rush.

Patterson was arrested and charged with three counts of aggravated assault with a firearm. He was being held without bond and was scheduled for a first court appearance the next day. The Palm Beach County State Attorney’s Office was also reviewing the case.

Patterson’s attorney argued in court that he had been protecting the business and had called 911 after the incident. Police said the evidence showed something different, saying Patterson escalated the confrontation and fired intentionally.

For restaurant workers, the episode is an extreme version of a familiar front-line problem: a dispute over something small, handled under pressure, with little margin for error once tempers spike. In fast food, the person behind the counter is often the first line of defense when customers push back over a drink, a refund, or a complaint. When de-escalation fails and manager backup is thin, the consequences can move from an argument to an arrest in seconds.

The Taco Bell shooting also shows how quickly a low-cost policy dispute can become a workplace safety crisis. A water cup meant for a free refill became the trigger for violence, and the fallout was immediate for everyone on the floor, from the customers who were shot to the staff now tied to a felony case at a single West Palm Beach store.