#09 – DC

Inspired by a news story from Washington, DC.

Assailant: Dave Gresham

I called Alex all night on his cell and he picked up the first time, acting like he didn’t know he was ‘sposed to work that night. And I was like, “You know you’re on at fucking six o’clock, why you acting like you don’t know?”

He said he’d be in soon, saying he was sorry and I was like, “Yeah, whatever. Just get over here.” I was ‘sposed to take care of my little nephew that night so my sis and her boyfriend could go out. It’s  Valentine’s Day. Like I want to be there selling bucket roses and boxes of rubbers to assholes all night, bro.  You was supposed to work. I called our manager and he told me to stay there until Alex showed up.

At almost midnight, yeah I mean mid…night. This goddamn joker comes in, looks at me, and says, “You’re the man! I hope you’re ready for a surprise,” or some shit. I was so mad, I don’t remember nothing except seeing a stupid grin on his face. He tried handing me money and I pushed his hand away from me. I said, “Hey, I just wanted to get out of there.” I was working there since ten that morning and we aren’t supposed to work alone. But the manager, he put me on by myself because I handle it just fine.

Then, Alex. He goes, “What’s wrong with you? I’m giving you some cash and ‘pologizin’” I said to him, “Maybe I had something to do. Did you ever think of that? Like, I don’t live here, you stupid idiot.” The whole time there are customers coming in and going out, and I am ringing them up and taking care of everything. Then, he had the balls to get angry at me! Can you believe it? He said to me, “What’s up with you? Did you have a date with your Mom in the robe you got her at Target?” but he said it like Tar-jay and was pumping his hips.

Something snapped in my head like when a light bulb goes crazy just before it dies. Just a pop or something. I grabbed the baseball bat we keep under the counter and swung at him. But, the asshole saw me going for it and ran away too fast. I ran after him, out the door, I didn’t care shit about the store, I just wanted to hurt him good. He yelled out for someone to call 911, but I caught up to him for a second and whacked him on the back. It thudded like when you hit the dirt, but he got away again.

I heard sirens, so I ran faster and got him again, but I only got his leg.

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Police Officer: Norman Turner

We were called to the thirteen hundred block of Fourteenth Street Northwest at approximately 11:30 the night of February Fourteenth. Bystanders called in a white male assaulting another white male with a baseball bat, both in their twenties. The dispatcher said bystanders identified the men as employees of the 7-Eleven.

When we arrived, the assailant was pursuing the victim across a parking lot, about two blocks from where the bystanders called dispatch. My partner, Officer Joe Brink used the loudspeaker, telling the men to stop. The victim stopped, but the assailant kept running at him. I ran out of the squad car and was able to restrain the assailant until Joe got there. The assailant managed to get a good whack or two on the victim’s back before I got to them.

The men were yelling at each other and the assailant yelled at us as we carried him in the squad car. He attempted to kick both Joe and me. But, after I cuffed him, I lifted him by his armpits and Joe had him by the legs. He was flailing around, but we got him in the squad car. He was going wild in the back seat.

Joe already called for the ambulance and backup, so by the time we went to help the victim, he was being checked out by the EMTs.

All the way to the precinct, the assailant screamed and kicked the partition. I was surprised that the drug tests came back negative. We don’t see sober folks go that crazy that often. But it does happen.

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Witness: Abbie Scofield

Well, I was at the 7-Eleven with my cousin, Annie. We were getting Slurpees and Twizzlers. She was watching me since my mom and dad went out for Valentine’s Day. We wanted to go to the movies that night, but my mom said it was Valentine’s Day and told us we shouldn’t be out with all those people kissing and whatever. So, it was late, but Annie said she didn’t want to just sit around all night.

We got our Slurpees, I got a Coca-Cola one that I mixed with Cherry and Annie just got Cherry. She likes to use the Twizzlers as straws, but I think that’s gross.

So, we stood outside for a while, but after someone asked Annie why we were out so late, she got freaked out and said we should go back before my parents got home.

But, let me get to the best part. You won’t believe it. It was really the best night of my life. I still can’t believe it.

One guy goes running out of the store and Annie says something to him, like, “Where’s the fire?” or something silly like that, like our grandfather would say to someone. But then the guy from the store who sold us our Slurpees goes running out of the store too, after the other guy and he has a baseball bat. My heart goes racing like crazy. We watched them run all the way down the street, but then we couldn’t see as good. So, Annie told me to run with her so we could see it.

They stopped at around where the Radio Shack is and the baseball bat guy hit the guy with the bat. They were yelling and swearing.

I think I finished my Slurpee and threw the cup on the ground while we were watching, because when the police car and ambulance showed up, I just had my arms folded and I felt like laughing and crying at the same time. It was exciting and I had never seen anything like that before, like real, not on tv.

Annie made me promise not to tell my parents about it, but I couldn’t stop thinking about it and I was shaking inside the next day. But, I knew if I told my mom, she wouldn’t let me go to the 7-Eleven again without her and I want to keep going in case something crazy happens again like that.

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REAL NEWS STORIES used as inspiration for the narratives above

Baseball Bat Wielded in Dispute Between 7-Eleven Employees Last Night
Posted by Ted Scheinman on Feb. 15, 2010, at 1:06 pm

At approximately 11:42 last night, MPD officers cuffed an employee behind the counter at the 7-Eleven in the 3100 block of 14th street NW. One cop lifted the man by his armpits, another by his legs. The employee—swearing, cursing, kicking—was carried out of the store and into the back of a cruiser idling on 14th street. After a brief struggle, the cop managed to close the door on the flailing suspect, who continued to hurl imprecations through the closed window.

“He was chasing his manager up the street with a bat,” one bystander said. “Just chased him right up 14th swinging at him.”

Another bystander caught video of the incident on her phone. MPD reviewed the footage before clearing the scene.

Officer Quintin Peterson says the incident was an “employee dispute” between 7-Eleven employees. “One allegedly assaulted the other with a baseball bat,” Peterson said. “One’s being treated for non-life-threatening injuries; the other was arrested with a baseball bat.”

Though I saw the assailant repeatedly try to kick an officer in the balls, Peterson added that no officers were injured during the struggle.

A girl of eight or nine stood grinning outside the 7-Eleven.  “This is the greatest night of my life,” she told me once the man was secured in the back of the cruiser. She shook her head and her little braids bounced back and forth. Her eyes were wide. “I…I have never seen anything like this before.”

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