California store owners break the rules by actually stopping a criminal
Hudson Crozier
Video Embed
Store owners in Stockton, California, are under investigation for allegedly assaulting an attempted robber. How the situation got to this point illustrates the broken system of crime-ridden, Democrat-controlled cities.
A man had robbed a 7-Eleven store at least two times in the past couple of days, according to authorities. An employee whom the man threatened to shoot reported both incidents to the police, as one is supposed to do.
WHY VOTERS AREN’T BUYING BIDENOMICS
Stockton has long been one of the most dangerous cities in America, however, and the understaffed Stockton Police Department prioritizes more serious 911 calls. Though the department’s headquarters sits across the street from the 7-Eleven, the owners were on their own as the man arrived a third time to exploit their helplessness.
In a now-viral video, the masked man is seen pushing items off of the shelves and into a trash can. He talks aggressively to the owners and repeatedly reaches into his back pocket, claiming to have a “strap,” or gun. A bystander is heard telling the owners that there’s “nothing you can do” and to “let him go.”
One owner approaches the would-be thief anyway and pulls him to the ground while another begins striking him several times with a wooden stick. Wailing under the blows, the suspect eventually yells, “OK!” and stops resisting. There have been no reports of significant injuries.
And just like that, these store owners did more to protect themselves and their property than their ineffectual government would. The pro-criminal system has now snapped into action as they face possible charges for “assault.” Like clockwork, local media have begun grossly sympathizing with the crybaby suspect.
“Leaving with bruised legs, the man’s only break was [a bystander] deciding to take off his shop owner hat and stop the man’s suffering,” a television station said.
“Frustration does not justify violence,” wrote the editorial board of the Modesto Bee, falsely implying that there was nothing threatening about the situation. “Street justice may be popular in movies or among frustrated citizens, but it has no place in a society governed by the rule of law,” they preached.
Since when was Stockton governed by the rule of law? The rule of law would have prevented this entire incident. Residents would be less inclined to take matters into their own hands if they felt safer and more confident that their rights will be upheld. But as the paper admits, “Petty theft often doesn’t get the cops’ attention, and if a thief is arrested, the punishment handed out in court typically is light.”
If officials have so little time and resources on their hands, they should not waste them on this flimsy “assault” case. Still, this is how things work under the perverse social norms of liberal crime havens. You are supposed to submit to lawlessness, and if you break that unspoken rule, your every action is subject to intense scrutiny.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
Hudson Crozier is a summer 2023 Washington Examiner fellow.