ST. LOUIS — A former Starbucks employee is suing the chain after he says he was wrongfully terminated after a December incident in which he and a coworker restrained a would-be robber until police could get there.
"I thought I was gonna die that day … they walked in, announced that it was a robbery,” 20-year-old Michael Harris recalled.
He was working the drive-through at the Starbucks on South Grand in Midtown.
"They started going up to people and frisking them for stuff and we started to fight back against them,” he explained.
He said when the two men then demanded cash from the register, he tried to open it. One of the robbers then hit him on the head with a gun.
He felt emboldened to stand his ground when he realized the gun he had just been attacked with was fake.
"The trigger for it busted off and that's when we noticed and started to fight back,” Harris said.
Not knowing if the crooks had another gun, he said he wanted to be careful but didn't want to see himself or others get hurt any further.
Eventually, one of the crooks took off. Harris and another coworker were able to restrain the other until police could get there.
Weeks after the situation, Harris said he got a call.
"They terminated me,” he said. “They didn't really give me a reason why I was terminated. They just told me I was, and I just had to accept it."
He and his attorneys want to know what policy he violated.
"They didn't create the dangerous scenario. They just did what they were supposed to do in that scenario. It happens fast…There's no way that an individual can be faced with danger, attempted potential death of themselves or another, and then once they’ve been hit or downed, that they cannot defend themselves,” Attorney Ryan Krupp said.
"It's a fundamental principal of the law of this nation and the law of this state that when faced with a life-or-death scenario, you are afforded the ability to defend yourself,” Attorney Robert Thomas Topping added.
Harris said he loved his job.
"I was hurt, especially because I tried to do my best for everybody else. I tried to be the best person I could to help everybody,” he said.
Starbucks provided the following statements:
The safety and wellbeing of our partners (employees) and customers is always our first concern. All partners are expected to follow our carefully crafted protocols to ensure the safety of customers and partners during these situations.
On Starbucks Armed Robbery Training:
At the time of hire and once a year thereafter, all partners go through de-escalation training. Part of that training includes armed robbery scenarios where partners are asked to comply with demands and to avoid doing or saying anything that can escalate the situation.