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Another Pizza Hut delivery man fired.

PT111

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, South Carolina, USA
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Pizza Hut needs to be put out of business.

http://www.thestate.com/breaking/story/709391.html

Columbia, SC


Pizza man says fear he'd die led to shooting


He’s unlikely to be charged for killing teen, has resigned job because of company gun policy


Apizza deliveryman, who said Monday he has been held up twice before, fired shots that killed a teenager during a holdup because he feared he would die and not see his wife and 5-year-old daughter again.

“I believe everyone has the right to defend themselves if their lives are threatened,” Christopher Miller, 43, said in a statement issued through police.

Miller, who said he has delivered pizza for about 10 years, has resigned because Pizza Hut bans employees’ carrying weapons, corporate spokesman Chris Fuller said.
Miller, who carried the gun in a fanny pack, had a permit to carry a concealed weapon and is unlikely to be charged, authorities said.

Paul Sturgill Jr., 17, bled to death under a hickory tree near an Irmo driveway after Miller fired two .45-caliber rounds into his chest Saturday, authorities said.

The bullets struck vital organs, but not Sturgill’s heart, Lexington County Coroner Harry Harman said, declining to provide details.

Sturgill and three other unarmed men chased Miller when he arrived at a house on the 300 block of Avery Place Lane about 10:25 p.m. Saturday, authorities said.

Someone had called in an order to a St. Andrews Road carry-out restaurant for two large, thin-crust pizzas with extra cheese.

Miller said he ran about 100 feet while Sturgill beat him before he pulled the trigger.

“Mr. Sturgill caught up to me,” Miller said. “He jumped on top of me, punching me several times in the face and head.”

Fearing the others would be on him soon, Miller said he “pulled my weapon and fired two shots in self-defense.”

He called 911.

Miller apologized to Sturgill’s parents for the loss of their son, who had returned to Irmo High School Jan. 5 after being away since the spring of 2005.

“I cannot begin to imagine the pain that you are going through, and for that I am deeply sorry,” Miller said.

In court on Monday, two of the accused denied they were involved in planning the holdup.

“My best friend’s gone,” Jason Todd Beckham, 18, told Lexington County Judge Brian Jeffcoat.

“As far as planning and the going through with the robbery, I didn’t have anything to do with it,” the slightly built teenager said as he stood in a orange jail jumpsuit at soldier-like attention.

“The only reason I didn’t say anything before is that I was threatened,” Beckham said without explaining.

Carlos Renard Dates, 20, denied he was involved in a conspiracy.

“It really wasn’t anything like that,” Dates told Jeffcoat, the county’s associate chief magistrate. The suspect said the men where “chillin’” at the Avery Place Lane house, where the owner later said he knew nothing about a pizza delivery.

When the commotion broke out between Miller and Sturgill, “I tried to stop it,” Dates said.

“There was nothing I could do. The guy had a gun and shot him.”

Lynn Sturgill said Sunday her son had never before missed a curfew. Paul Sturgill said, “He made one wrong decision. I guess he paid the ultimate price.”

Sturgill played in Irmo High School’s jazz band and had no disciplinary violations, the spokesman said.

A memorial service for Sturgill will be at 7 p.m. Wednesday at Barr-Price Funeral Home Lexington Chapel. Visitation will begin two hours earlier.

Lexington County Sheriff James Metts said the suspects — all former Irmo High students — are “callous.”

Metts said he thinks, but has no proof, they ate the $25.13 worth of pizza as Sturgill lay dying beside a driveway across the street from the delivery address.

“They took the pizzas and left; ... they were on the ground. We presume they ate the pizzas,” Metts said.

Detectives seeking an explanation for the robbery attempt are looking into the possibility that it might have been a gang initiation, Metts said.

Lexington County prosecutor Donnie Myers said he does not plan to review whether Miller acted properly.

The S.C. Attorney General’s Office said self-defense for deadly force can be, “kind of complicated.”

The person under attack must act reasonably throughout the incident, said Jennifer Evans, deputy attorney general for prosecutions.

The victim of the attack also must not be doing anything illegal, must try to retreat when possible and must believe he or she is in danger, Evans said.

Miller had run between 115 and 118 feet from where he was confronted before he shot Sturgill, sheriff’s spokesman Maj. John Allard said.

Myers said he agrees that Miller fired legally.

“If you’re bringing a pizza and they’re whipping your butt, you’ve got reason to shoot them,” Myers said.

On Monday in the small courtroom adjacent to the county jail, Judge Jeffcoat set identical $250,000 bonds for the three on charges of strong-arm robbery and criminal conspiracy. Both of the charges are felonies and carry penalties of up to 15 years and five years, respectively.

Justin Roundtree, 18, was the only one of the three to say nothing about the attack in court.

Relatives of Beckham and Dates attended the hearing but declined comment.

The three men left Irmo High without graduating, Roundtree and Dates in the fall of 2007, and Beckham in the spring of 2008, Buddy Price, spokesman for Lexington-Richland 5 said.

All said Monday they are unemployed.
 

protector84

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He should then sue Pizza Hut for creating an "unsafe workplace." While I can agree with others that private property has the right to prohibit weapons, I believe that the property owner is liable for the safety of the occupants on that property. In the case of delivery people, the company is sending them out off-site and telling employees that they cannot be armed actually puts them in danger. Since the company is paying for their labor while off site they should also hold a level of responsibility for their safety. In other words, if you prohibit workers from carrying guns and something happens, you should be sued out of business. Self-defense is a human right but a right that so many have no respect for.
 

DreQo

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There are a few pizza delivery people that like coming to my house because they know I'm armed. They sometimes call my cell and ask me to come down to the parking lot if there are shady people around lol. :D I feel bad for them sometimes.
 

compmanio365

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Wife was applying for delivery positions at one point, told her I don't care what the policy says, you ARE carrying at work. Better to find another job and be among the living.
 

Dustin

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PT111 wrote:
Dustin wrote:
So this is from this story ?

http://opencarry.mywowbb.com/forum65/22842.html



I'd defintely be calling a lawyer.
Same story, I looked but did not see it when I posted it. If the Mods could merge the two it would be giid.

Well that link is about what happen, your topic is about him getting fired :p

BTW Only John & Mike or MoDs so it would probably be best to PM either one with the merge request. :)
 

YllwFvr

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Sounds like that state has a duty to retreat law. Stupidity IMO. I would be taking some kind of legal action against Pizza Hut if I was him. AND file for unemployment in the meantime. I would probably be asking the manager if he feels better knowing I'm not dead or in the hospital because if he hadnt been carrying thats probably what would have happened. It would be great to hear what the manager had to say.
 

DHCruiser

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Prince William County, Virginia, USA
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The situation stinks and I don't like Pizza Hut's policy, but it says he resigned, wasn't fired. Is there other information indicating he was fired instead?

Good for him for standing up for his life.
 

protector84

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While I'm not into litigation over everything, there are reasons why I believe companies should be liable when they prohibit weapons. Here is how I look at it. My company as well as many companies that a lot of us work for have a magic sign on the entrances which say something along the lines of "Weapons Free Zone" or "No Firearms Permitted." What this does is tell every potential criminal both on the outside as well as on the inside that everyone is disarmed and essentially a "sitting duck" or "fish in a barrel." By telling crazies and criminals that everyone is unarmed is actually putting those people in danger. Additionally, the fact that by merely working there so that you can feed your family requires you to agree to waive your rights to self-defense is also endangering your life. While some may believe in "private property rights" businesses should not be granted the same constitutional rights as individuals or at the very least should not be able to infringe on an individual's constitutional rights. Additionally, people may argue that you have the choice not to work there. While true, I don't believe in complete deregulation of business. We require businesses to adhere to fire safety codes, building safety codes, health codes, non-discrimination laws, among other requirements. Therefore, if a business is going to prohibit weapons on the property or while working off-site, they are to either provide armed guard presence at all times or be liable for your safety.
 

ballester

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and to think if he surrenderd and took the beating and robbary..well then those crooks would have his money and his handgun.....God bless him and his....i hope it all works out in the end...but at the very least, but the most importent...he has his life...again God bless and i hope any and all that pray to whomever..send a prayer out to him and his familiy...
 

tat2ed_guy

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IMO "YOU CANT FIX STUPID" just do what you can to protect yourself, your loved onesand others from it. Forget pizza hut, Home Depot pays better, has benefitsand is Pro Gun.:celebrate
 

giaking70

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The S.C. Attorney General’s Office said self-defense for deadly force can be, “kind of complicated.”

The person under attack must act reasonably throughout the incident, said Jennifer Evans, deputy attorney general for prosecutions.

The victim of the attack also must not be doing anything illegal, must try to retreat when possible and must believe he or she is in danger, Evans said.

Miller had run between 115 and 118 feet from where he was confronted before he shot Sturgill, sheriff’s spokesman Maj. John Allard said.


hmmmmm...sounds rather vague to me. So you have to "try" to retreat while you're getting your ass kicked or possibly killed while in the same manner, NOT be doing anything illegal. Well lets see, he was delivering a pizza, nothing illegal about that. He was jumped by three guys who unknown to the victim could be ******* axe murderers, so he has reasonable belief that his life is now in mortal danger and has no time to "act" reasonably. He runs away while trying to fight off two or three guys some 115-118 feet away from supposedly the original spot where the attack took place? So you now have to make it clear you "tried" to retreat to a safe location, while there are three guys on you trying to beat the living shit out of you cause you have pizza. Now you've made the effort to elude your attackers and decide to go for your piece which in this case is a .45 caliber handgun and shoot one of them double tap in the chest, center mass. So the way I am reading this, according to the Deputy Attorney Generals Office, all this has to occur before deadly force can be used?

That doesn't sound right at all to me. You are attacked by three guys, it should automatically be a deadly force option right there cause (1)you're out-numbered,(2) you have no clue as to whom the attackers are and you have no clue as to their criminal background or where they come from or what they intend to do to you,(3)you have the absolute right to defend yourself with whatever means available to you at that given time, which in this case, was a .45 caliber handgun.

Now lets see the roles change, what if it were a female pizza delivery driver??


 

PT111

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, South Carolina, USA
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I am not sure what all the confusion was about, it was clear to me from the beginning and SC has both Castle Doctrine and Stand you ground laws. I don't understand all the retreating BS they are trying to lay on us.
http://www.scstatehouse.gov/code/t16c011.htm
http://www.thestate.com/local/story/713264.html


A pizza deliveryman acted in self-defense when he fatally shot a teenager who was assaulting him during a robbery Saturday, Lexington County sheriff’s detectives found.

No charges will be filed against 43-year-old Christopher Miller in the death of 17-year-old Paul Sturgill, Jr., according to sheriff’s deputies.

Detectives determined Thursday that Miller acted in self-defense after reviewing the case with the 11th Circuit Solicitor’s Office and a Lexington County magistrate.




b
Miller released a statement Thursday thanking the public for support during a “very difficult time.”

“I also ask that you have some sympathy and compassion for the family of the boy that died,” he said in the statement. “They are suffering more than I. Please keep them in your prayers.”

Sturgill and three other unarmed men chased Miller when he arrived at a house on the 300 block of Avery Place Lane on Saturday night, authorities said.

Someone had called in an order to a St. Andrews Road carry-out restaurant for two pizzas.

Miller said he ran about 100 feet while Sturgill beat him before he pulled the trigger.

He fired two .45-caliber rounds into Sturgill’s chest, authorities said.

Miller, who had a permit to carry a concealed weapon, has resigned from Pizza Hut.

Jason Beckham, 18, Carlos Dates, 20, and Justin Roundtree, 18, are charged with strong arm robbery and criminal conspiracy.
 

mvj007-1911

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It is real simple. Email YUM Brands and let them know you will not purchase any of their brands (Pizza HUT, KFC, A&W, Long John Silvers, Taco Bell) until they are willing to allow their Delivery Personal to have protection.
 

Kildars

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I used to work at papa johns. They also had a no firearm policy for drivers. A good friend of mine actually got held up at gun point (he wasnt carrying). Lord knows what would have happened if someones stuck a gun in my face when i was on the job.
 
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