Employees Shot by Coworkers, Customers, Criminals

Safety at Work

Athens, GA (WorkersCompensation.com) – Workers continue to face the threat of being shot by customers, co-workers and criminals, as evidenced by stories in the news this week.

In Athens, Ga., a dental office employee was shot in the face while working. According to police reports, officers were called to the McRae Family Dental Office around 6:30 a.m. on Dec. 3 for a report of gunshots. When police entered the office, they found 47-year-old Sheila Mobley sitting on the floor with her back against an open door and a gunshot wound to her face. Officers said Mobley was unable to speak and could only communicate through pen and paper.

“I prodded Mosley for information and, eventually, she grabbed a notepad and pen,” the officer said. “Mobley wrote down the name Carl Clark, an address and a vehicle description.”

Police searched for the 74-year-old suspect and his vehicle, a 2025 Hyundai Tucson. When they spotted the vehicle in Butts County, police initiated a traffic stop, during which Clark shot himself.

Mobley and Clark live at the same address in Athens, but police were unable to identify the relationship between the two. The victim and the alleged shooter were taken to separate hospitals where they were treated for their injuries.

When Clark is released from the hospital, he will be charged with attempted murder and aggravated assault, officials said.

In Lubbock, Texas, a grand jury indicted a man accused of shooting a convenience store employee in both of her legs. 

Ricky Cerna, 18, was charged with aggravated assault with a weapon, for the incident that happened on Nov. 2. If convicted, Cerna faces up to 20 years in prison. Cerna has been incarcerated since Nov. 5.

According to Lubbock police, officers were called to the convenience store for an aggravated assault. When they arrived, they found a 41-year-old woman with gunshot wounds to both of her legs. Detectives reviewed security video, which showed the employee exiting the store to go to her car as another vehicle arrived. According to the video, a woman left the just-arrived vehicle’s front passenger seat and headed into the store. The employee was seen following behind her.

The video also showed the employee looking into the vehicle and approaching the driver. The employee told officers that the driver called her over as she was going back into the store and accused her of “trying to look at his girlfriend,” police reports indicated.

As she tried to walk away, the employee said, the man brandished a handgun, racked it and shot at her three times.

Video showed the driver of the vehicle hold out his right hand and shoot the employee as the female passenger returned to the car. After shooting the employee, the driver left the scene. Police were able to capture the car’s license plate from the video. The license plate was also listed as being involved in a separate road rage incident three hours before.

In Philadelphia, a sanitation worker opened fire at his workplace.

Philadelphia police said the worker entered the Department of Sanitation facility on the 3900 block of North Delaware Avenue just after 7 p.m. on Nov. 26. Identified as Nelson Slaughter, 61, the worker was described as acting erratically before he left the facility. However, Slaughter returned to the building and fired two gunshots into the building, police said. Slaughter then fled the scene.

Officers investigating the incident said they found a man who matched the description of Slaughter and tried to stop him.

Slaughter ran away from the police and allegedly threw a gun over a fence. Police later were able to catch up with him and arrest him. Officials with the Philadelphia Fire Department were able to help police officers retrieve the gun from the property.

Slaughter is a sanitation worker assigned to a different team from where the incident happened. He was charged with aggravated assault, burglary and other related charges.

In Fort Worth, Texas, an employee at Flips Patio Grill was killed as he was leaving work.

Officials said Isaiah Angel Gonzales, 20, was shot outside of the restaurant on Nov. 30. Co-workers said Gonzales was ambushed. He was leaving work at 2:30 a.m. and was getting into his car with his girlfriend when they were shot by two people who fired multiple rounds into the driver side of the car where Gonzales was.

When police arrived, they found Gonzales with multiple gunshot wounds to his upper body. He was rushed to Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital where he died in the ICU. A GoFundMe was started to raise funds for his funeral expenses.

And in Dallas, Texas, a tire shop manager was shot and killed by one of his employees.

Police in Dallas said Marlon Lawrence, 21, a tire technician at Rent a Tire RAW Wheels and Tires, allegedly shot Billy Brightman, 42, in the back on Dec. 1.

Police believe Lawrence shot Brightman in the back as he was working behind the counter. He then allegedly shot Brightman again in the face. Another employee called 911 after hearing the gunshots, affidavits from the police said.

In interviews with the police, Lawrence admitted to shooting Brightman and to putting the handgun in his parked car. According to police, Brightman had just given Lawrence instructions before the shooting.

Dallas Fire-Rescue took Brightman to a local hospital where he was declared dead. Larence was arrested and booked into the Dallas County Jail on a murder charge. Police continue to investigate the incident.

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