Wow. Just, wow.
In Dayton, Ohio, a Dollar General store was held up by Roosevelt Rappley, an armed robber in his early 20's. However, he did not expect the store clerk to be packing heat. The two exchanged gun fire, which resulted in the clerk shooting and killing the suspect.
Rappley stumbled outside after being shot, where he was pronounced dead at the scene.
According to WHIO, here is how it went down:
Witnesses at the Dollar General told investigators that a person entered the store, revealed a handgun and then demanded money from the cash register, [Lt. Jason] Hall said.
A worker, who was not working at the cash register, was armed and confronted Rappley.
Witnesses said that he pointed the gun at employees, Hall said. In a 911 call, a man told dispatchers that a man with a gun attempted to rob him at the store.
“He pointed a gun at me,” the caller told the dispatcher, “I had a firearm on me. I pulled my firearm and I shot him in self defense.”
Now Rappley's family is outraged, speaking out against the store clerk. Speaking with reporters just outside the store where the fire fight went down, they claim that the clerk should not have had a gun at work.
Rappley's sister said, "He’s got some responsibility, but not all. Right and wrong is wrong, that was wrong for that clerk to shoot my brother in the chest."
She continued, "Yes, he’s robbing them. Oh, well! Call the police, that’s what you’re supposed to do. You’re not supposed to take matters into your own hands."
So she claims that her brother was in the wrong and that "some responsibility" falls on his shoulders. However, she actually has the audacity to blame the clerk in this situation?
The clerk did absolutely nothing wrong. In fact, situations like this are EXACTLY why people carry in the first place. If a person pulls a gun on me, and I have the chance to pull mine out in order to protect myself and those around me, I guarantee you that I will pull my gun and shoot.
Rappley was not innocent in this by any means. In fact, according to Lt. Jason Hall, he has been linked to several other robberies as well.
“The deceased did have a pending weapons charge that was waiting to move forward,” Hall said, “Right now we are looking into the possibility of this individual may have been involved in several other commercial robberies."
Sounds like the clerk did the community a favor.
Here is the interview with Rappley's family: