Preparedness
Clerk’s Quick Reaction Sparks Debate on Self-Defense Rights
In a recent incident that has sparked considerable debate, a New Orleans convenience store clerk fatally shot a 16-year-old armed robber during an attempted robbery. The event unfolded when two armed individuals entered the store, demanding cash. Surveillance footage captured 16-year-old Cecil Batiz pointing a gun with an extended magazine at the clerk working at the cell phone counter of Sam’s Meat Market.
As the situation escalated, Batiz was seen stuffing cash and other items into his pockets. The other suspect, 18-year-old Teony Juarez, was wearing a black ski mask. As the suspects attempted to leave the store, the clerk retrieved a firearm and discharged it, striking Batiz in the abdomen, causing him to collapse. The surveillance video further showed the clerk stepping out of camera view, only to return moments later and fire additional shots at Batiz as he lay on the store floor. Batiz succumbed to his injuries later at a hospital.
Juarez, in the midst of the chaos, returned fire and sustained an injury to his right forearm while fleeing the scene. An unidentified woman transported Juarez to a hospital, where he was treated and subsequently arrested. Juarez faces multiple charges, including armed robbery, aggravated battery, and illegal use of a weapon, with his bond set at $170,000.
The store clerk has not been charged, and Loyola Law Professor Dane Ciolino expressed skepticism about the likelihood of charges being filed.
“That clerk was in an obviously high-stress situation and saw the perpetrator still moving with a gun, and it’s hard to second-guess his decision to use deadly force yet again.”
Ciolino also clarified that under Louisiana law, Juarez cannot be charged for Batiz’s death, as the fatal act was committed by the victim, not a co-felon.
Orleans Parish District Attorney Jason Williams refrained from delving into case specifics but remarked,
“Once somebody puts a gun in your face, the rules change.”
He further noted,
“It’s painfully obvious to anyone who saw that video what those two people were doing in that store, and that shop owner did not ask for that exchange.”
Williams, who was elected in December 2020 with support from a PAC funded by George Soros, has recently undergone a shift in perspective regarding crime and punishment. This change came after a personal experience where he and his 78-year-old mother were victims of a carjacking. Following the incident, Williams recused himself from the carjacking case and acknowledged a transformation in his views, even reversing some of his previous campaign promises.
Watch a local news report about the incident below:
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