Fired Circle K employee charged with aggravated battery of manager

Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Jerrell Johnson, 33, was arrested yesterday and charged with aggravated battery and property damage after allegedly injuring a Circle K manager and destroying two computer monitors during an argument over his firing.

At about 6:35 a.m. on May 2, Johnson reportedly went to Circle K (4030 SW 13th Street) and asked to speak with the victim in the manager’s office; he reportedly asked her to reconsider firing him because he had taken accountability for stealing items from the business and didn’t mean to steal them. The victim reportedly responded that despite claiming he had taken accountability, he had never reimbursed the store for the item he had inadvertently taken.

Johnson allegedly became upset and started hitting the computer monitors on the manager’s desk and then flipped the victim out of her chair, causing her to fall to the floor and hit her head. A second altercation reportedly occurred in the hall, where Johnson allegedly hit the victim several times before pushing her into a hard object and then punching her hard enough that she fell to the floor.

The responding Alachua County Sheriff’s Deputy reported that he viewed surveillance video in the manager’s office after IT personnel brought another computer monitor; the video reportedly showed Johnson standing behind the victim’s chair at about 6:35 a.m. There is no audio, but the victim appears to become frustrated with Johnson and turns back to her work at the computers while Johnson continues talking to her.

A few minutes later, Johnson can be seen hitting the computer in front of the victim, completely destroying it. The victim pushes back, and Johnson allegedly hits the second computer monitor, also destroying that one, and then grabs the victim’s chair and tips it over. He briefly stands over her as she kicks at him, then he leaves the office.

The victim can be seen throwing a trash can toward the office door, then she follows Johnson down the hall. The deputy noted that the video did not show what happened in the hall and only their shoes could be seen, but the victim can be seen falling into a fan and then later falling to the ground. The victim then barricades herself inside her office while Johnson tries to push the door open, but she manages to close the door, ending the incident.

The estimated cost to repair the damage came to about $850, and the victim, whose eardrum was ruptured, lost her wages for the day because she had to go to the emergency room and was unable to complete her shift.

Because Johnson left the store before the deputy arrived, the deputy spoke with Johnson by phone, and Johnson reportedly admitted that he had damaged the store computers after being fired. He also reportedly admitted that he had flipped the victim out of her chair but claimed he acted in self-defense after she came toward him after he damaged the computers. The deputy noted that Johnson’s statements were not supported by the video evidence.

Johnson has been charged with aggravated battery and property damage. He has no local criminal history but has several arrests in Hillsborough County and at least one felony and one misdemeanor conviction. Judge George Wright set bail at $80,000.

Articles about arrests are based on reports from law enforcement agencies. The charges listed are taken from the arrest report and/or court records and are only accusations. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.