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Female Customers At Center Of Vicious NYC McDonald's Beating Indicted

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Are they victims or villains?

Two unruly customers who were beaten with a metal pole in a Manhattan McDonald's are, themselves, facing criminal charges. The incident was caught on camera and quickly went viral.

In what some may see an unusual twist, Rayon McIntosh, the McDonald's worker seen beating a customer, was not indicted. However, the two customers are now facing felony charges. The attorney for the two women said it's unfair and peculiar, CBS 2's John Slattery reported.

"It is peculiar because the person who wielded a weapon, the person who caused the injury, was let go and the people who end up in the hospital are charged with a felony," Harold Baker said.

A camera captured the disturbing incidents inside the Greenwich Village restaurant on Oct. 13.   Following a dispute at the counter, one female customer jumped the counter while the other walked around. McIntosh, 31, then grabbed a steel rod and came to the defense of a worker who was being verbally abused and allegedly hit.

"I was, I was scared because I've never seen that before," McIntosh told CBS 2's Derricke Dennis on Thursday night from his home in Jamaica, Queens. "I can't say that I'm pleased or happy. I'm not the kind of person who would wish the worst on anyone."

McIntosh said he was slapped, spit on, threatened, and had to defend himself, so he picked up the nearest object, and started swinging.

"It's like instinct. You don't even know that you're capable of doing stuff like that. Your instinct just takes over like I gotta fight for my life," McIntosh said.

One of the women suffered a fractured skull and a broken arm in the melee. The same grand jury that failed to indict McIntosh has now indicted the two women --  Myika Darbeau and Rachel Edwards, both 24 -- for burglary.  The attorney for the two women can't understand it.

"Mr. McIntosh's behavior was legally and morally unjustified, hitting the women while on the ground senseless. My clients were unarmed, did not attack Mr. McIntosh and they were brutally beaten," Baker said.

It's not known if the two women will face charges other than burglary. Their arraignment is set for Jan. 11.

The irony here is McIntosh has been to jail himself -- 11 years for manslaughter. But it's because of that time, that he said the indictments for his alleged attackers are nothing to celebrate.

"I would not wish that on my worse enemy because I know what its like to be away from your family, if you got kids," McIntosh told Dennis.

He's hoping to replace the awful memory of that night with new ones -- celebrating Christmas -- a free man.

What do you make of the decision to indict them? Sound off in our comments section.

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