A pharmacist who foiled two late night gunmen's attempt to rob a Walgreens Pharmacy in Michigan has been fired.
According to reports and a surveillance video from the store, about 4:30 in the morning on May 8, Mother's Day, Jeremey Hoven, 36, was sorting medications behind the counter when two armed men wearing masks entered the store pointing their guns at one of the workers. They take a second worker, a manager, hostage, dragging him through the aisles at gunpoint.
Hoven tries to call 9-1-1. "Seconds later, I saw another manager with a gunman. The gunman saw me, and I saw him," recalled Hoven. The gunman leaps over the counter, turns and aims his gun at Hoven. "I feared for my life." The gunman repeatedly attempted to fire upon me."
Three times the gunman tried, but the gun would not fire. Hoven fires his gun three times at the robbers and they run out of the store in a panic. Nobody got hurt in the incident. While some would see Hoven's actions as heroic, Walgreens apparently does not. Five days later, despite the fact that he had a permit to carry the gun, Hoven was fired for violating Walgreens' "non-escalation policy," as well as, a policy barring employees from carrying weapons while they work.
"At no time at my employment with Walgreens, was I advised of, given a copy of, or discussed with management an escalation policy."
In a statement to ABC News, Walgreens stands behind their decision and said their policies are designed for the safety of their customers and employees and are "endorsed by law enforcement." But Hoven is fighting back with a wrongful termination suit, now headed to federal court. "My client is asserting that he was fired in violation of Michigan public policy. Specifically, that citizens of Michigan have a right to defend themselves // and that Walgreens violated his self defense by firing him," said Dan Swanson, Hoven's attorney.
What do you think? Do you think the store pharmacist should have lost his job for using a gun he had brought to work as defense against robbers? Click here to take our KTRE.com web poll.
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