Gainesville man arrested after jumping counter at McDonald’s

Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Lorenze Ford III, 32, was arrested last night after allegedly jumping over the counter at the McDonald’s in Midtown and threatening to beat up an employee.

At about 9:37 p.m. on July 14, Gainesville Police Department officers responded to McDonald’s (1206 W. University Avenue) after an employee called to say Ford was causing a disturbance and yelling at people in the store.

The employee told officers that Ford was asked to leave several times, but instead of leaving, he became aggressive and jumped over the counter before threatening to beat up the employee. The employee said he moved Ford out of the employee area, but Ford still refused to leave; he said this was not the first time Ford had caused a disturbance in the store, and he wanted him to be officially trespassed.

Officers found Ford across the street from the store, and he reportedly said multiple times that he had been pushed. Ford reportedly refused to answer questions about the incident, but he said in the presence of an officer that he was going to go back to the store and beat up the employee.

Ford has been charged with burglary of an occupied structure and simple assault. He has two misdemeanor convictions (non-violent). He was most recently arrested in December 2025 at GRACE Marketplace for trespassing, resisting arrest without violence, and two counts of battery on law enforcement officers, and he served three months in the Alachua County Jail after the battery charges were dropped. Judge Susan Miller-Jones set bail at $70,000 on the new charges and ordered a mental health evaluation.

Articles about arrests are based on reports from law enforcement agencies. The charges listed are taken from the arrest report and/or court records and are only accusations. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.