After serving his country in the Marine Corps for four years, my son was honorably discharged and attained a job at Home Depot, while taking night classes at Indian River Community College to finish his AS degree. He had been a stellar employee at Home Depot for over a year, when, frightfully similar to the other story in Oklahoma about the four Home Depot employees being fired for helping the police apprehend shoplifters, the same exact thing happened in Port Saint Lucie, Florida about a year ago. My son was in the parking lot eating his lunch in his car when 3 female cashiers/associates came running out of the store screaming at a shoplifter to stop. My son immediately intercepted the shoplifter and took him down, holding him for the police, the shoplifter was immediately arrested when the police arrived.
My son and the 3 other employees were immediately fired!! My son, Raymond Hull, and the 3 other employees just thought they were looking out for the interest of their screwed-up employer. He was so disgusted over the insult and injustice, that he caved in and rejoined the Marine Corps, where he was promptly promoted to a Corporal.
He was asked to change his MOS to Intelligence because of his high scores, and spent four months in training where he finished in the top 3 in his class, earning another commendation. He commented that he couldn't understand the logic in punishing loyal, honest employees of Home Depot, and was so upset that he didn't trust life outside the military. I personally think all of these fired employees ought to get together and file a class action lawsuit against Home Depot.
My son is now serving in Iraq, and is about to be promoted to a sergeant. He plans on finishing his BS degree to get a commission as an officer. He commented to me that Home Depot was afraid they would be sued by this scumbag criminal, and probably paid him off to avoid a lawsuit. He also said to me, "...if this is how it works in civilian life, being rewarded for being a criminal, and getting fired and having your family threatoned financially for being honorable and hard-working, I don't want anything to do with civilian life".
My son re-enlisted 3 days before his separation time would have expired and would have lost all previous time and rank. He first enlisted in the Marine Corps when he was 18, and is now married with two children and is currently 26 years old. He hopes to be a 2nd Lt. before he turns 30. If any of the other employees of Home Depot who were fired under similar circumstances want to contact me, my email is hull2963@bellsouth.net.
I think Home Depot should be held accountable for destroying the lives of their honest hard-working employees while protecting and rewarding criminal scum as in the almost identical scenarios in Midwest, Oklahoma and Port Saint Lucie, Florida; especially given the fact that the firing of the Home Depot employees was conveniently kept out of the local newspapers here in Florida.
