Alabama Wal-Mart manager gets punched in face by shoplifter, loses his job

al.com Don Watson thought he was just doing his job when he chased and confronted a shoplifter stealing buggies overflowing with merchandise from the Prattville Wal-Mart a month ago. One night while working his regular shift, Watson, who served as the night manager, heard an alarm signaling an emergency door was open and he ran to see what was happening. He spotted a man, who he called a habitual shoplifter, with a buggy outside of the store. "When I caught up to the individual he turned and grabbed me, struck me in the face and dragged me to the ground," Watson said. "I got loose and was holding him down" when security personnel from an apartment complex across the street came to help until police arrived. Instead of being rewarded for recovering the stolen goods, Watson said he was fired 27 days later. "It was just kind of strange," he said, of his firing. "It was strange that they came to this conclusion after 27 days. I thought I was protecting the company." Watson was terminated on the grounds of "gross misconduct" for not looking out for his own welfare and not complying with Wal-Mart's security measures.