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Girlfriend of man stabbed by McDonald's manager in Des Moines says attack was unprovoked

DES MOINES, Wash. — The girlfriend of a man stabbed inside a Des Moines McDonald's by the restaurant manager Sunday says the attack was unprovoked, but police say the stabbing victim threatened and then punched the manager first.

Jackie Bruce says she and her family went to the Des Moines McDonald’s to order food; what they didn’t order she says was trouble.

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“When I was standing over him holding the napkins on his stab wound, he was passing out and at that point I didn’t know if he was going to make it or not. It was really scary,” Bruce told us.

Bruce’s boyfriend, Randy Brown, has a ruptured diaphragm; he’s now at Harborview Medical Center recovering from surgery.

Both Bruce and police agree that Bruce was stabbed in the chest by the McDonald's manager.

Both Bruce and police also agree that just before the stabbing the manager asked a group of people causing a disturbance to leave the restaurant.

But where Bruce and police don’t agree is on Brown’s role in the incident.

“He threatened the manager, threatened to shoot him, threatened to punch him, he spit on the manager, threw a milkshake on him and then he punched him in the face,” Des Moines Police Cmdr. Doug Jenkins told us.

“They’re like 10 feet away from me and all of a sudden the manager just swings on Randy, and Randy swung back in self-defense and the manager swung again,” Bruce countered.

She insists Brown was not part of that group and did not start a fight with the manager.  Police say other witnesses say otherwise.

Both Bruce and the Des Moines Police Department say the surveillance footage from inside the restaurant is pivotal to corroborating either story.

“We’re in the process of acquiring that right now and it’s going to be very instrumental in the final outcome of all of this,” Jenkins said.

Bruce and police agree on that as well.

“I think when they see the camera footage, everything is going to change,” Bruce concluded.

No one has been arrested in this case. We've submitted a request for a copy of the surveillance video.