You might think all is fair and square at a dollar store, where every item is, well, a dollar. But for Roderick Bennett, a 49-year-old customer at a New Orleans retail store, this wasn’t the case.
The story unfolded when Roderick Bennett, 49, got into a disagreement over an item’s price with a clerk at Dollar General on April 11 of this year. Yes, a price dispute in a dollar store, where one might assume everything is just a buck. But this wasn’t the case.
As the dispute escalated, Bennett took it a step further, drawing a firearm on the clerk, according to New Orleans police. But the situation took a surprising turn. The clerk quickly pulled out his own gun and shot Bennett, underlining a powerful example of a citizen choosing to defend themselves when faced with an imminent threat to their life.
Dazed and wounded, Bennett staggered to his vehicle, aiming to drive himself to a hospital. But his escape didn’t go as planned. He crashed his vehicle before reaching the hospital. A Good Samaritan picked him up and drove him the rest of the way, where he was rushed into surgery in critical condition.
A week later, Bennett was interviewed by the police, but he claimed he didn’t recall any of the events, not even the initial price argument. It’s quite a contrast from the detailed account the store employee gave to police on April 26. According to the clerk, Bennett not only instigated the argument but also invited him outside for a fight.
The surveillance footage confirmed the clerk’s statement, clearly showing Bennett exiting the store, pulling a gun, and approaching the employee aggressively. Only then, feeling his life was threatened, the clerk drew his own firearm and fired, hitting Bennett.
Bennett is now facing charges of aggravated assault with a gun and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, with bail set at $95,000. Not a small price for a dispute that started over the cost of a dollar store item.
Everything isn’t a dollar at Dollar General. Like Family Dollar, the are an inexpensive small version of some of the large chain stores like Walmart and KMart, not that they are affiliated with those specific companies. They have a variety of merchandise, with a variety of prices. Perhaps they don’t have these stores where the author lives.
As for the story itself, I think the phrase “possession of a firearm by a convicted felon” says it all.