Gun-rights advocates stand by Worcester workerBy Jessica Fargen
Friday, December 12, 2008
Antiviolence and gun-rights backers banded together yesterday in support of a Worcester liquor store clerk who shot and killed a masked man who allegedly pulled a gun on him during an attempted robbery.
Police said the clerk working Wednesday night at Big Bob’s Liquors was licensed to carry a firearm.
“It sounds like a clear-cut case of self-defense, which is what the Second Amendment is really all about,” said Jim Wallace, director of the Gun Owners Action League of Massachusetts. “The (clerk) was properly lawfully in possession of a firearm. It sounds like a win-win situation.”
Forty-year-old Evan Louis Rivera, who entered the store with another masked man, pointed a gun at one of the clerks and one of the clerks fired back, striking Rivera multiple times, police said. Rivera died 45 minutes later.
John Rosenthal, co-founder of Stop Handgun Violence and a rifle owner, said he supports responsible gun ownership and the use of firearms in self-defense.
“It’s a good thing the store clerk was licensed and trained and prevented this heinous crime,” he said. “If it was all legal, power to the guy.”
Rosenthal said the clerk may have conflicted feelings about the shooting.
“Now he has to live with the consequences of having killed somebody,” he said. “That’s a pretty major consequence. He may find solace that he is alive as a result of being armed.”
jfargen@bostonherald.comCourtesy of BostonHerald.com -
http://www.bostonherald.com/news/regional/view.bg?articleid=1138553