Texas: Dallas Store Clerk Turns Tables On Would-Be Robber

Dallas, Texas

From CBS11 of January 30, 2008

Dallas Store Clerk Turns Tables On Would-Be Robber

Dallas police say a store clerk came face to face with a would-be robber, but this time it's the suspect that ended up in the hospital.

The Motions Convenience Store, in the 800 block of South Corinth Street, is open 24 hours and sadly that sometimes makes it a convenient target for criminals.

On Wednesday police say a man came into the store at 4 a.m. and found that clerk Benny Brown was more than a match for him.

Brown wouldn't talk about details of what turned into a shooting incident, but said he remembers feeling fear as it unfolded. "Kinda rough, kinda rough. I really feel bad," Brown said. "I'm just, I'm still kinda nervous."

Police say what Brown did was defend himself when he saw the suspect with a semi-automatic handgun. Brown took a gun, that's left at the store, and fired it three times.

"This is something I wouldn't want to wish on anybody," Brown explained.

The suspect staggered away from the store empty handed and hours later a man, matching the suspect's description, showed up at Parkland Hospital with a gunshot wound to the head.

"Parkland Hospital called us regarding this gunshot victim," explained Sr. Cpl. Kevin Janse with the Dallas Police Department. "We're not sure if he had been in the hospital that entire time or if he tried to tend to his own wounds."

The suspect has been identified as 26-year-old Christopher Marquis Wade. Wade, who was listed in fair condition at Parkland, will be charged with aggravated robbery.

Given the circumstances and the history of the area, store patrons and police feel Brown's actions were justified. "Your safe during the day and a night you kinds gotta watch for yourself," one customer told CBS 11 News. "I think a person has a right to defend their property."

According to police reports Brown had seen the suspect several times in the past. He told authorities that when the man showed up at the store today it seemed 'suspicious'.

Texas: Clerk shoots at would-be robber

Bosque County, Texas

From the Waco Tribune-Herald of January 30, 2008

Clerk shoots at would-be robber

A Bosque County store clerk refused to be a crime victim for a second time in less than a year by shooting at a masked man who tried to rob him Tuesday morning.

No customers were in the Lake Stop Store at 340 State Highway 22 in Laguna Park at 10:16 a.m. when a man wearing a mask entered, said owner Balbar Deo, who wasn’t at the store at the time of the attempted robbery. The masked man was carrying an unknown weapon under his jacket, according to a Bosque County Sheriff’s Department press release. When the clerk saw this, he reached under the counter and pulled out a .22-caliber gun and shot twice at the would-be robber.

The store clerk, in his mid-30s, left early because he wasn’t feeling well, Deo said Tuesday afternoon.

Deo said the clerk had been robbed and badly beaten at the store last summer.

But Tuesday, the would-be robber fled the store after the clerk fired. The man drove away in a silver vehicle, according to the sheriff’s department.

A vehicle matching that description was stopped later that day by deputies in Hill County.

Officers arrested Stafford L. Jones, of Waco, in the case. Jones, 28, confessed to the attempted robbery and told deputies he had been grazed by the clerk’s bullets, the release stated. He was treated at Goodall-Witcher Hospital in Clifton, then booked into the Bosque County Jail on a robbery charge, the release stated. His bond had not been set late Tuesday, officials said.

Deo said he plans to install a glass barrier around the cashier’s desk for future protection.

Mom Uses Intruder's Gun To Drive Home Invader Away

San Antonio, Texas

From January 29, 2008 My San Antonio:

A North Side mother fought off an armed intruder inside her apartment early Tuesday morning.

"I was telling him, 'Please do not kill me in front of my baby,' " said the 24-year-old victim, who does not want to be identified.

According to police, a masked man broke in through a downstairs window in an apartment complex in the 8000 block of Bentley. Then, he made his way through the victim's home.

"I thought I heard somebody trying to open up my door," the victim said. "I jumped up, looked in my hallway, and I didn't see anybody."

A short time later, the armed intruder started kicking in the woman's bedroom door. The woman tried to knock out her bedroom window to scream for help and call 9-1-1 at the same time. But the man made it into the room with her and her 2-year-old son.

"I was crying just telling him not to kill me, that I would do anything he wanted me to do," the woman recounts.

The mother says she hit him with a lamp, bit his hand, and even tried to shoot him with his own gun, but the weapon would not go off. The suspect ran out the room, giving her a chance to call the police after she barricaded herself in with a dresser.

Georgia: Augusta homeowner shoots suspected burglary in leg

Augusta, Georgia

From WRDW of January 28, 2008

Augusta homeowner shoots suspected burglary in leg

One man admits he shot another, but it's the man who was shot who went to jail.

The Thurman family says after two people stole from them they got a security system and a gun. Now, they say, they've both come in handy.

"As soon as [the motion sensor] went off, we were able to look out the window and see that he had opened the door to the truck," said Michael Thurman.

He says he thought it was a burglar.

So he grabbed his gun, ran downstairs and went outside.

"When I saw him right here I said hey what are you doing?" Thurman said.

An incident report shows the suspect, Jeffery Whitt, started to run to a dark part of the yard.

Thurman says he couldn't see him and was afraid he might be going to get a gun.

"Anything could've been in [the] area, so I did what I thought I needed to protect myself and my family. I fired a few shots,"

One of those shots into the dark hit the suspect in the leg.

Whitt kept running down the street and ended up at Macedonia Baptist Church.

Deputies arrested him and took him to MCG.

Thurman says his GPS system was missing and deputies found one between his house and the church.

Michael's wife says she's glad her husband stood up for her.

"I am proud that I have a husband that would protect his family," Angela Thurman said.

Michael's thankful his bullet only hurt the suspect, but even happier it helped deputies catch him.

But still, he says he and his wife may have some sleepless nights.

"I'm still shaking from the incident. Going through anything like that is horrible," Michael said.

Delaware: Teen bandits flee after store clerk takes gun

Dover, Delaware

From the News Journal of January 28, 2008

Teen bandits flee after store clerk takes gun

A store clerk turned the tables on a pair of armed robbers during an attempted holdup at a convenience store, Dover police said today.

Two teens walked into the Little Grocer convenience store on East Division Street about 9 p.m. Sunday and demanded money, Lt. James Hosfelt said.

When one of the bandits brandished a sawed-off shotgun in the direction of the clerk behind the counter, the gunman and clerk got into a physical confrontation, Hosfelt said.

The clerk refused to hand over any money from the register and then grabbed the shotgun out of the hand of the would-be robber.

After the clerk established control of the situation, the two bandits went running from the store, Hosfelt said.

Texas: Grocery Store Guard Shoots At Shoplifting Suspect

Houston, Texas

From Click2Houston of January 23, 2008

Grocery Store Guard Shoots At Shoplifting Suspect

A grocery store security guard opened fire on a shoplifting suspect on Tuesday, KPRC Local 2 reported.

Houston police said the guard at the Fiesta store on Hillcroft Street near Bellaire Boulevard spotted the man inside the store at about 6:45 p.m.

The guard was waiting for the man as he left the store, officials said. The man elbowed the guard as he tried to stop him, police said.

Investigators said the guard fired a warning shot as the man ran away.

Police tracked the man down about a block away. An ambulance was called out to treat the man for an injury he suffered when he fell on concrete.

Ohio: Double Shooting In Miami Township Kills 1

Miami Township, Ohio

From the WHIO of January 26, 2008

Double Shooting In Miami Township Kills 1

A double shooting in Miami Township Friday night killed one person and injuried another.

The shooting happened a litte before midnight on Soldier’s Home Road west of Miamisburg.

The homeowner shot and killed an intruder who shot a woman inside the home, police said.

A woman was taken by care flight with a gunshot wound, police said.

The names have not been released of those who were involved.