DETROIT — People shouldn’t be locked inside gas stations, says the city of Detroit. This comes a year after a man was fatally shot during a fight with another customer.
Police said that the shooting was made worse by a clerk’s choice to lock the door while he was behind glass.
The Detroit City Council passed an ordinance on Tuesday that says workers can’t push a button to lock the door from afar. The Detroit News reported that it would apply to places of business where workers are covered by glass.
Council member James Tate said, “The goal is to ensure that the threat stays outside of the gas station, convenience store, liquor store, or party store.”
In May 2023, there was violence because a $3.80 electronic buy could not be completed.
A video showed Samuel McCray swearing repeatedly and saying he was going to leave a gas station with the items. Before clerk Al-Hassan Aiyash locked the door, three more people came in. This kept the four people inside.
Three of them were shot, and one of them died. McCray is being charged with murder and attempted murder. Aiyash is being charged with killing by accident. Their trials are still going on.
Judge Kenneth King told Aiyash, “None of this would have happened if he hadn’t locked the door.”
When he locked the door, Aiyash’s lawyer said he didn’t know McCray had a gun.
