ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, December 18, 1996 TAG: 9612190006
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-4 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: HOUSTON
SOURCE: The New York Times
Catch a thief, lose a job.
That was the company policy that led to the dismissal of Wiley Berggren, a 7-Eleven manager in Odessa who apprehended a 15-year-old beer thief at his store last week, tied him up with a trash bag and called the police to come pick him up.
The next day, just hours after a pizza lunch at which he was given company awards for increasing sales and controlling overtime, Berggren was called back to headquarters and dismissed.
Berggren, a 7-Eleven employee for eight years, said he acted out of concern for the safety of a female customer, but he violated a strict policy that employees should in no way interfere with anyone stealing merchandise or holding up a store.
The dismissal of Berggren has made him something of a martyr in the West Texas media and on the talk-radio circuit in Texas and, by his own laconic description, has ``put a crimp on my holiday plans.'' It even has the Odessa police expressing sympathy for him, though they stress that the dismissal is a matter between him and his employer.
``I know Wiley Berggren personally,'' said Cpl. Robert Hammerman of the Odessa Police Department. ``The man is a hell of a 7-Eleven manager, and it's too bad this happened.''
The dismissal has focused attention on the non-confrontation policy that many convenience-store chains have put in place and staunchly defend as a way of saving employees' and customers' lives.
``If there is a crime, what you're supposed to do is not resist,'' said Margaret Chabris, a spokeswoman for Southland Corp., which owns or licenses more than 16,000 7-Eleven stores worldwide.
``You don't know if someone has a weapon or what their state of mind is,'' Ms. Chabris said. ``We can replace beer that's stolen. We can replace money. We can't replace somebody's health or their life.''
Working in a convenience store, a prime target for hold-ups, can be a deadly profession. In fact, it is the second most dangerous line of work in terms of violent crime, after driving a cab, according to a study a few years ago by the National Institute for Occupational Health and Safety, a federal agency.
Berggren said he understood the company policy but acted instinctively and did what he thought was right.
The incident was videotaped by a security camera, but the company that is licensed to operate 7-Eleven stores in the Odessa area, Southwest Convenience Stores, says the tape is now police evidence and cannot be released to the public.
The female customer for whom Berggren expressed concern can be seen in the tape, the company said, but she left after the incident and has not been located.
The Dec. 9 incident involved six 18-can packs of beer valued at $80.94, the police report says. Three juveniles, two boys and a girl, ``were in the process of committing what is called a `beer run,''' said Cpl. Robert Hammerman of the Odessa Police. ``That's a theft.''
Berggren, 37, a father of two boys and a native of Odessa, said he saw ``these three little hoodlums'' yank beer out of the cooler and then make their way to the exit, clearly, he said, with no intention of paying.
He said he yelled to the female customer to get out of their way. Then, he said, one of the boys picked up a bottle of brake fluid, threatening to throw it at somebody, as the three continued to charge for the door. Berggren said the other boy started swinging at him with one of the packs of beer. To stop him, Berggren said, ``I wrapped my arms around him.''
Berggren said he called to a clerk to bring him a trash bag. ``Then I tied this kid's arms behind his back and I told him not to get away. He said, `I'm not going anywhere.'''
The other two youths got away. The name of the boy who was apprehended has not been released, because he is a juvenile.
Chabris, the Southland spokeswoman, said there was no justification for Berggren to engage any of the youths in a struggle. ``He's lucky he didn't get killed,'' she said.
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