No Charges, No Job: Ohio Circle K Clerk Who Shot at Masked Robbery Crew Says Store Let Him Go
Key Takeaways
- Kendrick Watson, a 41-year-old Circle K clerk in Stow, Ohio, fired seven shots at four masked men who rushed the store after a stolen minivan rammed the entrance.
- Watson said he opened fire because he believed his life and his co-worker's life were in danger.
- Police confirmed Watson will not face criminal charges and returned his firearm after taking it during the investigation.
- Circle K fired Watson the same day of the shooting, citing a no weapons policy, after he had worked there for six years.
- One suspect, Peirion D. Jackson, 25, of Cleveland, was arrested and charged with robbery, receiving stolen property, and vandalism, with bond set at $100,000.
Estimated reading time: 4 minutes
STOW, OH — The 41-year-old Circle K clerk who fired seven shots at a masked robbery crew after a stolen minivan was driven into his store will not face criminal charges, according to police, but he says the company fired him for having the gun.
Last week I covered Armed Stow Circle K Clerk Fires Seven Shots After Robbery Crew Rams Gas Station With Stolen Minivan at 3:30 A.M. At that point the clerk had not been named and no charging decision had been announced. He has now been identified as Kendrick Watson, and he has spoken publicly about the shooting and what came after it, as reported by the New York Post, drawing on Watson’s interview with 3News.
Watson was sitting behind the register around 3:30 a.m. on Nov. 2 when a stolen minivan was driven into the storefront again and again. The glass entrance shattered. An ATM was knocked loose. A second minivan pulled up. Four masked men jumped out and rushed toward the store. Watson grabbed his gun. He fired seven shots. The crew fled.
He was not alone in there. A co-worker was inside with him.
“Once they rushed the store, I thought my life and my co-worker’s life at the time was in danger, so I opened fire to protect myself and my co-worker,” Watson said.
He did not talk about the register, the ATM, or the building. He talked about two people inside a store whose front had just been destroyed, with four masked men coming at them. That is the only frame in which deadly force belongs.
Police said they do not know whether any of the men were hit, but confirmed Watson will not face criminal charges. Investigators took his firearm during the investigation and later returned it.
Watson says he had worked at that Circle K for six years. He says his manager called later that same day and told him not to come back.
“It was just disappointment, really. I knew I was going to get fired because they have [a] no gun, no weapons policy, so I knew that was coming, but my only issue with that was, obviously, this was an extreme situation,” he said.
In a video interview, Watson said this particular Circle K is one of the only ones in the area open 24/7 that you can walk into, which leaves it exposed when something bad happens. “I’m sorry it happened, but I was glad I was prepared,” he said. He said that was the reason he had his gun on, because you never know what can happen.
Watson knew the policy. He knew what carrying could cost him. He made that decision before his shift ever started, not in the seconds after the glass came down. That is the mindset piece of this story. Every armed worker on an overnight shift is weighing the same trade, and Watson made his call ahead of time with his eyes open.
More from USA Carry:
- Armed Stow Circle K Clerk Fires Seven Shots After Robbery Crew Rams Gas Station With Stolen Minivan at 3:30 A.M. – USA Carry
- Clerk Shot and Killed a Man When He Tried to Rob a Convenience Store with a Screwdriver
- Lynnwood Jewelry Store Owner Opens Fire After Masked Crew Rams a Pickup Truck Through His Storefront at Midday
- Store Clerk Nearly Shot During Robbery, Returns Fire Killing Suspect
- Store Clerk Attempts To Stop Liquor Robbery, Shoots Into Teen’s Car
One suspect, Peirion D. Jackson, 25, of Cleveland, was arrested after running off on foot. He is charged with robbery, receiving stolen property, and vandalism, according to the Akron Beacon Journal, and his bond was set at $100,000 cash. At least three others escaped in a stolen brown 1997 Chrysler Town & Country minivan, last seen heading west on Steels Corners Road toward State Route 8. Police said both minivans used in the attempted robbery had been stolen from Cleveland. The charges against Jackson are allegations, and he is presumed innocent unless convicted.
Watson has started a GoFundMe to help cover his expenses while he looks for another job. “It was a traumatic experience,” he wrote on the page.
Read the original story: No Charges, No Job: Ohio Circle K Clerk Who Shot at Masked Robbery Crew Says Store Let Him Go