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Playing Dirty Harry at the 7-11

By Steve Lombardi

Robberies of Convenience Store Clerks

A Des Moines robber got the surprise of his life when the store clerk pulled his own gun, aimed it and they had an old fashion standoff. The robber fled on foot to a nearby apartment complex. The store clerk worked at the Family Pantry Food and Liquor store, 4538 Lower Beaver Road, Des Moines, Iowa.

I've covered convenience store clerks being involved in robberies before.

Iowa Workers' Compensation - Carter Lake Store Clerk Shot to Death ...

... Iowa Workers' Compensation - Carter Lake Store Clerk Shot to Death. ... 2007 I wrote about the Tama hotel clerk who was ... the employee is compensable under Iowa law. ... 101k

Dennis Armstrong - Robbery - Hotel in Toledo Iowa | InjuryBoard ...

... after being shot in the leg Thursday during a robbery attempt ... v. Quik Trip Corp., 641 NW2d 725 (Iowa 2002 ... robberies for which he was victimized as a clerk, and (2 ... 100k

As I've previously stated: There is precedent for Armstrong to receive workers compensation benefits. The suddenness of the attack distinguishes his claim from those where stress is more gradual. Here are a few quotes from the case Brown v. Quik Trip Corp., 641 N.W.2d 725 (Iowa 2002):

….The Supreme Court, Larson, J., held that: (1) claimant satisfied legal causation test for establishing a mental/mental injury from robberies for which he was victimized as a clerk, and (2) when a mental injury claim is based on a manifest happening of a sudden traumatic nature from an unexpected cause or unusual strain, the legal-causation test is met irrespective of the absence of similar stress on other employees.

....

"Where a mental injury occurs rapidly and can be readily traced to a specific event, ... there is a sufficient badge of reliability to assuage the Court's apprehension. Where, however, a mental injury develops gradually and is linked to no particular incident, the risk of groundless claims looms large indeed."

For whatever reason I find these stories interesting; often times wondering what would possess a person to take a gun to steal money when jobs can be had for those willing to work. What would a person need to believe this is the answer to their problems? How can someone be so desperate that they would believe opportunity comes in the form of a robbery? Whatever those reasons may be the clerk is the innocent party to which they have not asked to be shot or made to believe they will be shot. In this instance the clerk pulling out a gun only amplifies the challenge of getting out alive. It sounds good for a movie script but in reality consider the questions in each person's mind; should I wait to be shot or shoot now?

My client shot by the robber will never be quite as trusting with people. He'll live out his life wondering if he takes a job where he's alone and in contact with the public if he'll encounter his robber; a man never caught. A point that brings up a second nagging doubt about life in general; who was that man who shot him in the leg?

For those wondering, I'm on vacation in Germany so some of what is posted is on automatic and I haven't been able to proofread some of what was written previous to departure.

Onward we march.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Steve Lombardi

Full post as published by Des Moines Personal Injury Lawyer on July 13, 2009 (boomark / email).