Man denied service, arrested after being drunk in Fort Pierce Wendy's drive through, police say

Wendy's workers refused service to a man accused of being drunk at the drive through and claiming three people were about to rob the place.

Fort Pierce police, however, granted service to the man, arresting him about 11:40 p.m. March 1 on a DUI charge.

A manager at the fast food eatery on North U.S. 1 in Fort Pierce told police a man later identified as Richard Todd, 46, was denied service "because he was drunk and causing a problem," a recently released arrest affidavit states.

Todd left the drive through, motored around the building and returned to the drive through.

"This time he told them that they were about to get robbed by 'three (racial slurs),'" the affidavit states.

A drive through is an alternate location at many fast food restaurants, including Wendy's, McDonald's, Burger King and Taco Bell, where people who do not wish to leave their vehicles can purchase food and beverages. In general, orders are placed via a microphone system and picked up at a window.

The manager called police, and an officer reported finding Todd in his truck at the drive through speaker.

While phonetically similar, drunk in the drive through is not to be confused with "Born on the Bayou," the 1969 Creedence Clearwater Revival song, or with poet and civil rights activist Maya Angelou, or with the blue-and-white droid R2-D2 from the "Star Wars" movies.