Pistol Packing Preacher
01-01-2010, 10:53
Brew ha hah
Young robber meets match at coffee stand
COEUR d'ALENE -- Talk about the perfect time for a Kootenai County sheriff's deputy to grab his morning caffeine fix.
And it didn't hurt that the barista was packing heat.
Any way you look at it, a would-be coffee stand robber had some tough luck on Wednesday.
It was just another morning of doling out lattes and espressos for Michelle Cornelsen, owner of the Sunshine Espresso kiosk at Ironwood and Government Way, when a teenager walked up to the window around 6:20.
Pulling out a gun, he asked for all her money.
He picked the wrong kiosk.
Cornelsen, 31, who has been hunting since she was a small child, didn't tremble at the sight of the barrel.
"My first thought was honestly, 'Is that thing even loaded?'" she said with a laugh on Wednesday afternoon. "He didn't seem that sure of himself. Not intimidating at all."
When a customer pulled up to the opposite window, the teen quickly put down his gun and hid it.
Seeing her opening, Cornelsen whipped out her own 9 mm Kel Tec -- a Christmas present from her husband and business partner, Kevin.
"I put it in front of his nose and said, 'You leave NOW,'" she said. "And he said, 'OK, OK, OK,' grabbed his (gun) and walked away real slow. Real nonchalantly."
Shortly after, deputy Michael Douglass heard details of the robbery crackle on his radio. Having just picked up a drink at the espresso stand himself, Douglass was only a few blocks away. He swerved a quick U turn to help form a perimeter.
"It's like everything clicked into place," the 55-year-old said Wednesday at the sheriff's office. "Maybe God wanted me to wake up."
Just as his car reached Government Way and Locus, Douglass happened to glance out his left window and saw a figure matching the suspect's description: Black hoody, teenager.
The suspect didn't bolt, as Douglass, a member of the civil division, was cruising in an unmarked vehicle.
"He looked at me, and I looked at him," Douglass said. "I drove past, did a U-turn and drove behind a building where he couldn't see what I was doing."
Pulling his car to block the teenager's way, Douglass jumped out, drew his weapon, identified himself, and asked the suspect to show his hands.
The teen didn't respond.
"He kept going like this," Douglass said, putting his hands in his pockets and shuffling his fingers. "He was fingering something."
After being asked three times, the teen at last pulled out his hands: Empty.
Douglass ordered the boy to his knees just as the other patrol cars pulled up.
"I never saw anything so pretty in my life," said Douglass, who has never confronted a robbery suspect on his own before.
It wasn't until later -- when Douglass learned the suspect had a gun in his pocket -- that he finally felt some fear, he said.
"Truthfully, I was really calm (facing the suspect)," he said. "Everything slowed down. It was dead quiet. I could almost hear the snow."
There was no fear on Cornelsen's end, she said.
She has carried a concealed weapon for seven years, and she brings it to the stand every day.
"I'm just a business woman, a conservative and a gun owner," she said, adding that her Christmas present replaced a smaller model.
She has never been held up before, she said.
"I always go through the scenario in my mind. First and foremost comes my health," the slim brunette said. "But this is my business, my asset. I have to protect it, too."
No reason any lady couldn't do the same, she added.
"Girls need to be more confident, not be so scared all the time," Cornelsen said. "Like take self defense classes. I'm a small person, someone could easily take me. But you'd better believe I'd pitch a fit."
The robbery suspect is 17 years old, and has been transported to the Juvenile Detention Center. Because he is a minor his name will not be released.
Under Idaho statute, robbery is punishable by a prison sentence ranging from 5 years to life.
Cornelsen said she thinks he might have learned his lesson.
"I hope I gave this kid some second thoughts on what to do with his life," she said.
Young robber meets match at coffee stand
COEUR d'ALENE -- Talk about the perfect time for a Kootenai County sheriff's deputy to grab his morning caffeine fix.
And it didn't hurt that the barista was packing heat.
Any way you look at it, a would-be coffee stand robber had some tough luck on Wednesday.
It was just another morning of doling out lattes and espressos for Michelle Cornelsen, owner of the Sunshine Espresso kiosk at Ironwood and Government Way, when a teenager walked up to the window around 6:20.
Pulling out a gun, he asked for all her money.
He picked the wrong kiosk.
Cornelsen, 31, who has been hunting since she was a small child, didn't tremble at the sight of the barrel.
"My first thought was honestly, 'Is that thing even loaded?'" she said with a laugh on Wednesday afternoon. "He didn't seem that sure of himself. Not intimidating at all."
When a customer pulled up to the opposite window, the teen quickly put down his gun and hid it.
Seeing her opening, Cornelsen whipped out her own 9 mm Kel Tec -- a Christmas present from her husband and business partner, Kevin.
"I put it in front of his nose and said, 'You leave NOW,'" she said. "And he said, 'OK, OK, OK,' grabbed his (gun) and walked away real slow. Real nonchalantly."
Shortly after, deputy Michael Douglass heard details of the robbery crackle on his radio. Having just picked up a drink at the espresso stand himself, Douglass was only a few blocks away. He swerved a quick U turn to help form a perimeter.
"It's like everything clicked into place," the 55-year-old said Wednesday at the sheriff's office. "Maybe God wanted me to wake up."
Just as his car reached Government Way and Locus, Douglass happened to glance out his left window and saw a figure matching the suspect's description: Black hoody, teenager.
The suspect didn't bolt, as Douglass, a member of the civil division, was cruising in an unmarked vehicle.
"He looked at me, and I looked at him," Douglass said. "I drove past, did a U-turn and drove behind a building where he couldn't see what I was doing."
Pulling his car to block the teenager's way, Douglass jumped out, drew his weapon, identified himself, and asked the suspect to show his hands.
The teen didn't respond.
"He kept going like this," Douglass said, putting his hands in his pockets and shuffling his fingers. "He was fingering something."
After being asked three times, the teen at last pulled out his hands: Empty.
Douglass ordered the boy to his knees just as the other patrol cars pulled up.
"I never saw anything so pretty in my life," said Douglass, who has never confronted a robbery suspect on his own before.
It wasn't until later -- when Douglass learned the suspect had a gun in his pocket -- that he finally felt some fear, he said.
"Truthfully, I was really calm (facing the suspect)," he said. "Everything slowed down. It was dead quiet. I could almost hear the snow."
There was no fear on Cornelsen's end, she said.
She has carried a concealed weapon for seven years, and she brings it to the stand every day.
"I'm just a business woman, a conservative and a gun owner," she said, adding that her Christmas present replaced a smaller model.
She has never been held up before, she said.
"I always go through the scenario in my mind. First and foremost comes my health," the slim brunette said. "But this is my business, my asset. I have to protect it, too."
No reason any lady couldn't do the same, she added.
"Girls need to be more confident, not be so scared all the time," Cornelsen said. "Like take self defense classes. I'm a small person, someone could easily take me. But you'd better believe I'd pitch a fit."
The robbery suspect is 17 years old, and has been transported to the Juvenile Detention Center. Because he is a minor his name will not be released.
Under Idaho statute, robbery is punishable by a prison sentence ranging from 5 years to life.
Cornelsen said she thinks he might have learned his lesson.
"I hope I gave this kid some second thoughts on what to do with his life," she said.