At around 5 a.m. on Jan. 18, a man came into a gas station in Avondale, Ariz., with his face covered, mumbled something about “rob” and “money,” and then pointed a gun at the clerk and at a customer. However, when the suspect became distracted by another customer, the clerk reportedly drew his own firearm and shot the assailant. The would-be robber was taken to a hospital in critical condition, and neither the clerk nor any customers were hurt in the incident. While mainstream-media accounts often quoted an employment attorney advising clerks against arming themselves, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics has found that about two-thirds of workplace homicides involved robbers. “I’m not happy I had to shoot him,” the clerk told reporters, “but I’m not stressing.

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