Man Who Assaulted Taco Bell Manager Claimed He Just Wanted to Apply for a Job

If you’re interested in applying for a new job, the experts at Glassdoor suggest that you should start by researching the company that you’d like to work for, do some advance networking by reaching out to current employees, and make sure that your social media profiles present the best version of yourself. Those are all good tips, but they should probably specify that “reaching out” doesn’t mean “physically assaulting your potential manager.”

Last Saturday, Joseph Ristick walked into the Taco Bell in Gresham, Oregon to complain about the sluggish service in the drive-thru line. According to the Gresham Police Department, the manager on duty told Ristick that the customer who was sitting at the window hadn’t completed his or her order. (“They do have a large array of tacos and delicious drinks after all,” the cops wrote in a Facebook post.)

That’s when the 35-year-old allegedly turned violent, yelling and berating other customers in the restaurant before assaulting the manager. (That is not the spirit of Living Más!) The police were called to the scene, and although Ristick fled on foot, they were able to quickly locate him. He told the arresting officer that he had gone into the restaurant to get a job application “because they clearly needed help.”

Weirdly enough, the manager was interested in sitting across from Ristick, asking him to detail his career goals or list two of his weaknesses. (Behaving in public seems to be one of them). Ristick was booked into jail on charges of assault in the fourth degree, as well as charges related to an outstanding warrant. “Clearly Ristick would go through great lengths to get someone a quick and tasty taco but pretty sure he’s not getting an interview anytime soon,” the police department joked.

Fortunately for Ristick, there are three more Taco Bells in the Gresham area. Maybe he can reevaluate the meaning of “reaching out” and get that job application after all.