Reginald “RJ” Harrell’s mother is demanding justice after the 17-year-old was fatally stabbed inside a McDonald’s bathroom by a 16-year-old co-worker.
Denisha Dennis spoke to KHOU in raw grief after deputies found her son bleeding from multiple stab wounds around 11:30 p.m. Wednesday at the fast-food restaurant on Louetta Road in Harris County, Texas. Harrell, a senior at Cypress Creek High School, had picked up a shift he was never scheduled to work.
“He did not have to go out like this. He didn’t have to be murdered. He did not deserve this at all,” Dennis told the station.
The suspect, who has not been publicly identified because he is a juvenile, was arrested at the scene and booked into the Harris County Juvenile Detention Center on a murder charge. Investigators have not disclosed what triggered the fatal confrontation between the two teenage employees.
“I want the kid responsible, I want justice for my son, because I don’t have my son no more. He’s gone. He was only 17. And I can’t talk, I can’t hug him, he can’t say, ‘Ma, I love you’,” Dennis continued.
Harrell’s sister, Kourtnee Dennis, described the ordinary final moments before he left for the restaurant that night. “I would have never thought that the last time he walked out my door to go to work would be the last time that I see him and talk to him,” she said.
Family members told KHOU that Harrell had dreams of becoming a welder after graduation. The extra shift he worked Wednesday was voluntary, making his death at the hands of a fellow employee all the more crushing for relatives who said he should have been home instead.
The McDonald’s location was temporarily shut down Thursday morning as a cleanup crew worked inside the restaurant, according to KHOU footage from the scene.
Michael Gutierrez, the owner of the franchise, issued a statement offering condolences to Harrell’s family. “We are saddened by this tragedy, and our hearts are with the victim’s loved ones and all those impacted,” he said.
“Right now, our focus is on the well-being of our restaurant employees, and supporting them as they process these events,” Gutierrez added.
The Harris County Precinct 4 Constable’s Office responded to the late-night call and found Harrell in the bathroom, where he was pronounced dead. The 16-year-old suspect was detained without further incident, though authorities have released no additional details about the weapon used or the nature of the dispute that escalated to lethal violence.