Dairy Queen employee stabbed

July 25, 2004
Columbus Dispatch

Newark woman stabbed during robbery

HEATH, Ohio — A Newark man is charged with stabbing one of two female employees abducted at knifepoint during a restaurant robbery Friday night.

Charles W. McCoy, 32, of 249 W. Church St., was jailed on charges of attempted murder, aggravated robbery and kidnapping.

Heath police said one employee was emptying trash outside Dairy Queen, 720 Hebron Road, about 11:30 p.m. when a man with a knife forced her inside. Another employee was inside, preparing to close the store.

The women were forced to remove money from the safe and then ordered outside the store at knifepoint, police said.

Heather Bonifant, 21, of Newark, and Teresa Holcombe Miller, 34, of Newark, fought their abductor, who stabbed Miller six times and then fled, police said. Bonifant was not injured.

Miller was taken to Licking Memorial Hospital in Newark and then flown to Grant Medical Center in Columbus, where she was in fair condition yesterday afternoon.

Newark police arrested McCoy at his home about one hour after the incident.

Commentary:
Several Dairy Queen stores throughout Ohio have posted discriminatory signs banning concealed handgun licenseholders. The owner of a Canton DQ has contacted OFCC and explained that all franchises are independently owned and operated, and that he has received no order to post signs. Based upon his invitation to CHL-holders, his store will be placed on the Safe Alternatives list.

Whether or not this Heath store had posted such signs, this incident should show the other Dairy Queen stores on the Do Not Patronize While Armed list just how much they are endangering their employees.

These Dairy Queen managers need to hear about the tragedies which became known as the Captain D's murders in Tennessee, after that restaurant chain made a move to ban firearms. They need to hear about the experience of Dr. Suzanna Gratia-Hupp (now a Texas State Representative), who was forced to watch her parents lives be taken (along with 21 others) in the Luby's Restaurant rampage shooting in Kileen, TX because she was required to leave her firearm in her car.