Jim Hook

jhook@publicopinionnews.com

WAYNESBORO - Shop owners have welcomed the actions of an Antietam Pharmacy employee who used his concealed firearm to shoot a robber.

Eric Christie, owner of Christie’s House of Pipes and Cigars, said it was great to have someone stand up to protect their life and liberty and to defend their property.

“I’m darn proud of them,” he said.

Police: Masked robber shot during attempted robbery

A pharmacy employee on Monday drew a concealed handgun and shot an aggressive armed intruder, according to the Waynesboro Police Department. The intruder is in York Hospital.

On Tuesday when Carl Hill opened his gun shop, Hill Top Arms, he had five people waiting at the door.

“The last thing we want to do is to start panic buying,” Hill said. “We offer firearm classes for people who are on the edge. We go over what firearms can do and what they can’t.”

A gun owner must be prepared to make the investment, then practice and train, he said.

One man came in to buy a handgun specifically because of the incident, Hill said. His wife gave him the go-ahead after the self-defense shooting. Hill gave him paperwork and told them to return if they were certain.

“We thoroughly support people’s right to take responsibility for their own defense,” Hill said. “We have a marvelous police force. The fact of the matter is they can’t be every place. You are your own first responder.”

According to Crime Prevention Research, nearly 11 percent of Pennsylvanians are permitted to carry a concealed firearm. That’s double the national rate. The state ranks fourth in the U.S. behind Alabama, North Dakota and Indiana.

Pennsylvania with more than a million people permitted is second only to Florida.

William Scott, owner of Wild Bill’s on Main Street, said criminals would do better to stay in Maryland where there are fewer gun owners.

“We know to protect ourselves,” Scott said.

He quotes a popular statistic from the internet: Franklin County is the 15th most armed county in the U.S.

The figure was compiled by city-data.com, which has given no source for the data. According to city-data.com, 48.5 percent of households in the county have a firearm.

Anyone walking into the second-hand shop can see themselves on Scott's security camera.

“That’s just a deterrent,” Scott said. “Most people know. We’ve been around. You get the idea when somebody comes in wearing a big jacket or something (there’s going to be trouble.)”

Scott said he’s sure the pharmacy was in the same situation.

“There’s always some guy going to walk in with a gun,” he said. “I have a philosophy: If it’s my time to go, it’s my time to go.”

The shop owners said they were not surprised by the armed robbery in the small town of Waynesboro.

“The world’s growing and we’re growing,” Scott said. “The drug problem is the real problem.”

Jim Hook 717-262-4759