Nashville Liquor Store Owner Shoots Suspected Shoplifter

Nashville Liquor Store Owner Shoots Suspected Shoplifter

In Nashville, a liquor store owner shoots a suspected shoplifter and was arrested. Was it self-defense or aggravated assault? Read more about the story below!

Liquor Store Owner Shoots Suspected Shoplifter

May Boyce, an 88-year old widow and small business owner, shot a shoplifting suspect in the back on June 16 in Nashville.

Boyce was charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and has been released on a $10,000 bond, but is due back in court on June 29.

What Happened?

Ramon Fisher and a second man only referred to as “One Eye” by the suspect, entered Boyce’s liquor store, Murfreesboro Road Liquor and Wines, around 8:30 pm.

The second man approached the counter asking for brown liquor as Fisher moved to the back of the store.

Fisher admitted to officers that he was under the influence of alcohol and cocaine that evening, and had intentions to steal from the store.

Boyce has owned the store for 26 years and has been robbed and assaulted numerous times, including an attack two months ago that has left her wearing a wrist brace ever since.

Despite having never shot a gun before in her life, the confrontation on June 16 led her to pull out her late mother’s .38 Smith and Wesson snub-nosed revolver and lay it on the counter.

When Fisher moved towards the exit with two liquor bottles, Boyce stood her ground and shot him in the back.

Boyce told officers that she did not intend to shoot Fisher, only to scare him. She said that she was aiming for the ground.

Fisher yelled out that he was shot and fell onto a shelf full of bottles. The second man helped Fisher out of the store.

Fisher is expected to make a full recovery. The second man has not been identified or apprehended.

Boyce is Fed Up

Boyce does not want to play the role of a helpless old lady. She is “fed up” and able to take care of herself.

“I did what I had to do, and I hope word gets out on the street that I’m fed up and I’m not taking it anymore. You’ve got to stick up for yourself sometimes,” Boyce was quoted in an interview with the New York Post.

A frequent customer of her store came to Boyce’s defense, stating that she has been “afraid to defend herself against would-be thieves because of what has been transpiring.”

He calls her being charged with a crime for defending herself, “ridiculous.”

Boyce has one prior arrest on her record, a Class A misdemeanor of selling alcohol to a minor, from 2006.

The case was dismissed in 2007 and Boyce did not pay court fines or spend any time in jail.

Stand Your Ground

Tennessee is considered a gun-friendly state. They issue permits for both open and concealed carry and there is no requirement for purchase approval or registration of firearms.

Vehicle carry is allowed without a permit – a handgun may be open or concealed in a vehicle as long as it is not on your person. This includes boats and RVs.

Stand Your Ground laws apply in Tennessee. If you feel that you are in danger, you do not have to retreat – in your home or business, or anywhere else that you are legally allowed to be.

What's your take on the shooting? We'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments section!

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Editor’s Note: This post was originally published on June 25, 2020, and has been updated for quality and relevancy.

15 Responses to :
Nashville Liquor Store Owner Shoots Suspected Shoplifter

  1. juanita L. robinson says:

    The only reason they went into her store is they felt is was safe to steal from her . She has a right to take action against a thief How many other times has she been robbed by people that took advantage of her because of her age.

  2. THAT IS RIDICULOUS IF A PERSON ARE PERSONS ARE ROBBING YOU IN YOUR HOME ARE BUSINESS ARE YOU ARE IN DANGER OF HARM TO YOU ARE YOUR FAMILY YOU HAVE A RIGHT TO PROTECT YOUR SELF AND FAMILY I DO NOT CARE WHAT THOSE BLEEDING HEART PEOPLE SAY . I WOULD HAVE DID THE SAME AS SHE DID .

    1. Steven Daniels says:

      you and me both, this is all Rediculous Bullshit

  3. Ozzie says:

    If you make the decision to rob or steal drunk or sober you can’t call foul if your victim wins the fight, I say let her go to fight another day. The word is out now not to mess with her and her store. Good for her.

  4. Ross says:

    This poor woman had been previousely robbed and assaulted,and was probably in fear for her life, still suffering from an attack She had the moral and legal right to use deadly physical force. Atta girl,God Bless You!!!!

  5. griffin says:

    Fortunately stealing is not a crime punishable by death. Someone could steal your lawnmower right before your eyes and you do not have the right to shoot him or her…is a lawnmower or couple bottles of booze worth a life? Of course not, even a low-life.
    So what do you do?
    Get out your gun and confront the scum, demanding very loudly he return the goods and not return himself. You must be prepared to shoot quickly, because if he moves toward you NOW YOU HAVE JUSTIFIABLE CAUSE and hopefully witnesses will be alerted.
    The same applies anywhere.
    Remember, you will incur lawyer and court costs and hassle regardless but if the issue is clear-cut you should have no trouble in rational jurisdictions (which rules out Chicago, New York, and especially California)

    1. Lee says:

      Intent. She was fearful for her life. She shot him. If she intended to kill him, she would have kept shooting him until he was dead. Just because someone turns away does not mean he is leaving. In a moment, he could have rushed back and beaten the crap out of her or more. Dropping the case against her was the correct thing to do.

  6. Mike Greenwell says:

    I worked at a liquor store in Bowling Green, KY in the early 1970’s while attending college on the GI Bill after getting out of the Army. I kept a gun under the counter because the store was in a “rough” section of town. The day manager told me if someone came in and gave me a “lot of hassle” just shoot them and take some money out of the register and throw it on the floor and claim they tried to rob me!! I also had that gun because I made large deposits at the drive through bank about 11:15PM. Prior to my taking that job another liquor store clerk had been shot and killed when leaving the store he worked in after closing at11:00 PM. He was only carrying $250 to deposit, was a veteran, was married, had two small children and was attending school on the GI Bill. She was defending her property!! Charge the two scumbags with robbery and send them to prison!!!!

  7. Rick says:

    Y’all are gonna love this…

    While I am all for standIng your ground rights, thermos no reason to shoot someone in the back for something like shoplifting. Especially if the person is exiting, and are themselves not in possession of a weapon.

    I’m afraid this lady is in for quite a legal battle if TN, as most states, use the “reasonable man” doctrine.

    I hope for the very best for her, but ( if this depiction of the story AS IT IS PRESENTED HERE) this was still an unarmed man fleeing, this making her the pursuer.

  8. Jacob says:

    The police should of arrested the two thugs for consperiency. One man distacts the business owner while the other conceals a bottle of booze. She was with in her rights to defend her property. Word on the street is not steal from that store. The thug got what he deserved and has probably learned his lesson.

  9. Mikial says:

    Yup, this is what it’s come to. Criminals can walk into an old lady’s business that had been victimized numerous times before, with full intent to commit a crime, and it’s the little old lady who gets arrested. Does anyone else see anything wrong with this picture?

  10. rottenrollin says:

    Give that lady a commendation medal.

    IF ONLY the Blue leadership in the riot cities had the balls to do the same as her, we wouldn’t be having all this civil violence and burning.

    But of course Blues with their RABID TDS will do ANYTHING to try to hurt Trump, including condone violence and mayhem.

  11. Isn’t it wonderful that we have an opportunity to make our comments ?

    I wish Ms. Boyce could have sold her store and made enough money to retire and live a peaceful life
    in her remaining years.

    Instead of having to go to work every day or night and be in fear of being killed during a robbery ?

    Anyone who would take advantage of an elderly woman by stealing her merchandise that she had for sale to make a living should be definitely be thrown in jail. She had to pay for that liquor with
    the idea she would make a profit. So, two low life’s come in and steal and cause her to lose her investment. It is not known if these guys had stolen from her before nor is it not known if they will return again and again to steal her merchandise. They probably would have knowing that she is
    far above retirement age.

    If those two guys had not entered her store to steal liquor they would not have been shot at.

    I hope a jury understands her fear and does not indict her.

  12. Steve says:

    Not guilty!

  13. Rich says:

    The Laws need to be changed. I work all my life, acquire the things it takes to survive and then some jerk is going to take it away from me and affect my ability to provide for myself and my family? I get those thjings I need to survive and am at the age I don’t have the time to recover my losses. If If don’t have insurance the will provide me with enough relief to go on I’m ruined. NO WAY! I say they need to be stopped, antyway you have to. They pick on Older People and often harm them seriously, some even to the point of death. Well, time to wake the crooks up, or put them to sleep!

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