Cleared clerk who stopped armed robbery quits over Circle K gun policy

A convenience store clerk in Stow, Ohio who fired on masked robbers ramming their way into his Circle K says the company sidelined him anyway, and he's decided not to return after six years on the job.

Snapshot

Kendrick Watson fired seven shots after suspects rammed the store's entrance with a stolen minivan, and police determined he acted lawfully and will face no charges. According to Bearing Arms, Watson says Circle K pulled him off the schedule afterward, leaving him uncertain whether he still had a job and ultimately deciding to walk away over the company's no-weapons policy.

Key points

• Cleared by police: Authorities determined Watson's use of his firearm against the masked robbers was lawful, and no criminal charges were filed against him.
• Hours cut, then confusion: Watson says he got a text telling him not to come in and that he'd been removed from the schedule, and after two more days without word he believed he'd been fired.
• Offered return, declined: He says he was later told he could come back, but questioned how that would work given Circle K's policy against employees carrying weapons at work.
• Walked away: After six years with the company, Watson decided not to return and says he hopes others take his experience as a reminder to be prepared to protect themselves.
• Pattern of discipline: Bearing Arms columnist Cam Edwards says he'd previously found other cases of employees disciplined for self-defense, including a Colorado woman he says was fired for fending off a knife attacker barehanded.

Quick take

Edwards argues that Circle K's blanket weapons ban leaves night-shift clerks defenseless against exactly the kind of armed, ramming-style robbery Watson faced, and he says the company should be grateful its employees survived rather than treating self-defense as a policy violation. That's his opinion, not a settled legal matter, but Watson's case is a plain example of the gap between what the law allows and what an employer will tolerate.

Read the full story: bearingarms.com