re: So the employee that shot the robber is in custody

quote:

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For me, it is the attempt at forceful theft - breaking into a jewelry counter, that elevates this to a violent event. If there was jewelry on the counter and the guy grabbed it and ran, that is shoplifting. But the brazen act of physically breaking into storage compartments in the midst of customers and employees is different. At that point it is a robbery.

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See, that’s a reasonable, articulable position. We could discuss what rises to the level of a “forceful theft”. That’s actually an interesting phrase to use because it creates a sort of third category that doesn’t exist in Louisiana law, which is where i live. There is “theft”, the taking of something of value with the intent to permanently deprive, and there is “robbery” the taking of something of value from the person of another or that is in the immediate control of another by use of force or intimidation. There is no third category of a theft by force of something that is not in the immediate control of someone. At best, the damage to the case would simply be a criminal damage to property charge added to the theft charge.

I would still argue, even with some damage occurring in the process of stealing something, since that something wasn’t in the immediate vicinity or control of another person, it doesn’t rise to the level of a “robbery” or justify the killing of the thief, morally or legally.