The Orange County Criminal Lawyer Blog
A Salvation Army bell ringer was accused of trying to spear a Publix manager with a donation stand after allegedly causing a disturbance outside a Florida grocery store on Christmas Eve.
On December 24, the incident happened outside a Publix in Stuart, where a 63-year-old man was working as a seasonal Salvation Army bell ringer performing part-time Christmas charity work. The situation reportedly escalated when the man allegedly began aggressively confronting people as they entered and exited the store. His behavior was reportedly concerning to the employees, and a store manager eventually stepped outside in an attempt to address the disturbance and speak with the bell ringer about his conduct. According to reports, the man appeared to be intoxicated at the time.
The authorities said the interaction did not go as the manager planned, and instead of de-escalating, the man allegedly became violent. Investigators reported that he attempted to impale the manager using the metal tripod that supports the Salvation Army donation kettle. The manager was not injured during the encounter. After the alleged confrontation, the suspect reportedly left the area before deputies arrived at the scene. Law enforcement later located him at his residence, where he was taken into custody.