Dairy Queen shuts store over slurs

ZION, Ill. — Dairy Queen has closed one of its stores in Illinois and terminated its relationship with the franchise owner after police say he used racial slurs in a confrontation with a customer.

A Zion police report says the franchise owner, Jim Crichton, told an officer he called Deianeira Ford, 21, of Tinley Park, Ill., and her children a racial slur. He also said he was “fed up with black people” and would go to jail over the issue. According to the report, Ford said he used the slur after she asked for a refund for a mixedup food order in the drive through.

Ford, the mother of a 2-year-old daughter and 5-month-old son, said, “No one deserves to be treated like that.”

The incident prompted protests outside the Dairy Queen on Saturday. Ford said she is considering legal action; her attorney didn’t immediately return a call seeking comment.

Crichton apologized in a statement provided by American Dairy Queen Corp. and said he would undergo sensitivity training.