Skip to main content
See every side of every news story
Published loading...Updated

19-Year-Old Wendy’s Manager Who Allegedly Tied Neurodivergent Employee to Grill Arrested on Multiple Charges

Police said the 19-year-old admitted the act was a TikTok trend, and the restaurant fired her after video of the restraint surfaced.

  • On Thursday, Sept. 19, Murfreesboro Police Department Criminal Investigations Division detectives charged former Wendy's manager Michiko Burton, 19, with misdemeanor simple assault and false imprisonment for tying a neurodivergent employee to a grill.
  • Burton admitted to tying the neurodivergent worker to a workstation at the South Church Street Wendy's on August 30, claiming the act was part of a TikTok trend and intended as a joke.
  • Co-Worker Nicholus Murphy recorded the incident, which an area manager later called 'unacceptable'; Wendy's of Bowling Green confirmed Burton was fired following an internal investigation.
  • Burton was booked into the Rutherford County Adult Detention Center on a $2,000 bond, with a General Sessions Court date set for October 22 before Judge Ben Hall McFarlin III.
  • The employee's family is currently considering whether to pursue further legal action, while Adult Protective Services continues scrutinizing the case after Murphy and the family disputed Burton's 'joke' justification.
Insights by Ground AI

30 Articles

Former manager of a Wendys restaurant in Tennessee, U.S.A., is prosecuted after attaching a neurodivergent employee to kitchen equipment with garbage bags. She says that it was...

The IndependentThe Independent
Reposted by
The Independent (US)The Independent (US)
Lean Left

Ex-Wendy’s manager who ‘tied a neurodivergent worker to a grill’ facing charges

Michiko Burton, 19, allegedly claimed it was part of a TikTok trend

·London, United Kingdom
Read Full Article
Think freely.Subscribe and get full access to Ground NewsSubscriptions start at $9.99/yearSubscribe

Bias Distribution

  • 61% of the sources are Center
61% Center

Factuality Info Icon

To view factuality data please Upgrade to Premium

Ownership

Info Icon

To view ownership data please Upgrade to Vantage

WSMV Nashville broke the news in Nashville, United States on Friday, September 18, 2026.
Too Big Arrow Icon
Sources are mostly out of (0)

Similar News Topics

News
Feed Dots Icon
For You
Search Icon
Search
Blindspot LogoBlindspotLocal