Donations flood to Jennifer Wertz New Mexico Circle K clerk who was fired for shooting an armed robber. Self defense vs corporate liability?
Jennifer Wertz an Albuquerque, New Mexico, Circle K gas station clerk as of Wednesday evening has had $70K donated to her (and counting) after supporters flocked to support her after firing her for shooting at an armed robber.
Addressing Circle K’s policy of employees forbidden to bring weapons to work, Wertz said she had no choice but to defend herself after an armed robber pointed a gun at her last week.
‘I grabbed my gun from my pocket, I cocked it, and I shot,’ the mother of three said, via FOX6. ‘I’m sick and tired of being a sitting duck.’
Wertz said she had the gun with her at work out of fear of being robbed while on duty. She said her employer hadn’t been doing enough to ensure her safety.
Told the gas station attendee, ‘Robberies have been going on like this for the past few weeks. They have done nothing to protect me. And I felt the need to protect myself.’
Wertz’s gunshot hit suspect Ferron Mendez, 23, in the chest. He is expected to survive, authorities said.
Despite thwarting the robbery, Circle K initially suspended Wertz for two weeks and then ultimately fired her because the chain’s policy prohibits employees from carrying guns while working.
‘We are not to chase,’ Wertz said, describing Circle K’s policy toward robbery suspects. ‘We are not to provoke. We are not to do anything. We just stand there and give them what they want and they leave.’
While asking: ‘What if he would have come in and just shot me just because I wasn’t behind the counter?’
Jennifer Wertz Circle K clerk: The right to self defense. Charges to follow?
After Wertz was fired, her mother launched a GoFundMe page, with a goal of raising $20,000. A sum that has since been far surpassed in an avalanche of support for the woman, with many believing she had every right to defend herself irrespective of the corporate’s policy.
‘She won’t ask for help herself, so I’m doing this for her,’ Wertz’s mother, unidentified by name, wrote on the page. ‘She is torn apart emotionally and is in need of time to recover from this ordeal.’
‘She has always been a good person, mom and daughter. She is in need of dire help to support her family. She was already living pay check to pay check and now has no savings or nothing to fall back on. Please help as much as you can to support her and her family until she can find a new job.’
Wertz said the donations will give her ‘a chance to be able to focus on my mental state … make sure that I am OK and then, of course, legal funds which are going to come up of course.’
So far, however, no charges have been filed against Wertz.
Jennifer Wertz Circle K clerk: The internet reacts.
And then there were these comments on the web that made this author wonder, see what you think?
She made the right decision, no gas station job is worth your life. We have a “no weapons” policy too, but several of us pack. Why? Because you never know. Not one of us would consider the loss of our jobs to be more important than the loss of our lives.
Good for her! I’m tired of the anti-gun people in this country. There are countless stories of thousands of law-abiding gun owners every year saving property and lives, sometimes without having to pull the trigger. It’s obvious the anti-gun people don’t like these stories
Circle K’s policy puts their employees in danger. We all know what an easy target quick marts are. None of the companies want to put their employees behind bulletproof glass or some other safe situation. Until then, its on the employees to save themselves.
Every convenience store should have their employees take gun classes and have a gun available for them to use. And it wouldn’t hurt for other businesses to do the same. She could’ve easily been killed, and would the company have raised her kids?
As much as I believe in the second amendment and a person’s right to defend themselves, the company has to defend itself from lawsuits too. If they don’t fire her, then the next time one of their employees does something like this, the family of the criminal that gets shot will blame the company for creating a climate that allowed it to happen. And, let’s be honest here, they would probably win.
It’s a corporation with policies, lawyers and insurance concerns worried about liability concerns.
Great. In America you kill someone, and get awarded for it. Crazy.
And what if the clerk could have just as easily wounded an innocent bystander or accidentally shot someone?
You are actually more likely to be harmed if you have a gun. They typically just want the money, so given them the money.
Lucky she was able to defend herself, in California they probably would have arrested her.
I hope she uses some of the money to buy a bigger handgun.