That loss prevention guy... I was under the impression that most stores wouldn't allow him to chase a suspect out into the parking lot, anyway.
While it's easy to analyze the story, and say "What should have happened, was...", I recognize that I wasn't there, and much of the story comes to me, third hand.
Still, I wonder if the loss prevention officer couldn't have done things a little differently, from the start, to prevent the whole scene in the middle of the road.
Myself, if a strange guy is pointing a gun at me, I'm not digging in my pockets. He may be convinced that he was on the wrong end of an unloaded pistol, but I doubt that he was able to look through the barrel, to know for sure. It may have been loaded with only one round.
The mysterious stranger could have done things differently, too. Though, one can't be too mad at him. Decent people help people in distress. I don't know that I'd be inclined to trust a slovenly dressed fellow with a badge, either. That said, I'd have stuck around for the aftermath. But, then, I can't say that I blame him for getting out of there, either. Some jurisdictions may have crucified the man, out of spite. Sheriff Duck Adams, of Dinwiddie,(and his crew of misfits) don't much like citizens who "do their job". If you go over and above a simple 911 call, they'll gladly ruin your day. So, maybe that's why the guy took off.
The biggest thing I take from the story is that there seems to be far too much incentive to keep your decency to yourself, these days. Potentially saving the life of a stranger could mean total devastation to your family. There is something inherently wrong with that.
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