Should someone be fired for defending themselves?
That’s what reportedly happened to a clerk at a 7-Eleven in Oklahoma when she shot a man she said had attacked and choked her after he allegedly tried handing her a counterfeit bill.
KOKH-TV reported that 25-year-old Stephanie Dilyard used a personal firearm, shooting 59-year-old Kenneth Thompson.
According to police from another KOKH report, Thompson was trying to use counterfeit money in a transaction with Dilyard.
Thompson reportedly went behind the counter and started strangling the clerk when she would not take the money.
Dilyard shot him in the stomach, causing Thompson to run down the street, where he called 911.
At the same time, Dilyard called police to the 7-Eleven store. Officers later learned the two incidents were connected.
Thompson was arrested and charged with assault and battery, trying to pass a fake bill, a felony warrant for a parole violation, and threatening acts of violence.
INJUSTICE? Stephanie Dilyard has been FIRED from an OKC 7-Eleven after she shot a man who was trying to STRANGLE her after she refused to accept his counterfeit bill.
Police say Dilyard acted in self-defense.
7-Eleven says she violated their policies.
There are now calls to… pic.twitter.com/0mJAaibBzn
— Election Wizard (@ElectionWiz) November 18, 2025
Should 7-Eleven re-hire Dilyard immediately?
Dilyard was subsequently terminated by 7-Eleven.
This is not Massachusetts or New York we’re talking about. This is Oklahoma, a stand-your-ground state.
Criminal defense attorney Ed Blau explained 7-Eleven’s corporate policy that led to the employee’s dismissal.
“They do not want all of their employees packing heat while working all over the country. That presents a tremendous liability risk for them,” he told KOKH.
Dilyard set up her own GoFundMe, telling her story about the incident and her life as a mother.
“Police say it’s self defense and I went home, only to get a call Monday morning from 7Eleven HR saying I was fired for violating policy,” she wrote.
“For over 2 years I worked overnight from 11pm-7am with the same company, at the same location, but my days didn’t end then, I would come home and be with our 3 year old while my boyfriend works blue-collar,” she wrote.
Dilyard explained why she armed herself on the job.
“As many already know, us overnight clerks are by ourselves. We have no security, and we are not allowed to carry self defense weapons, including [mace].
“However, working conditions, it was not realistic for me to be able to follow policy AND be able to go home to my kids if a situation happened. That’s … why I decided to carry in the first place.
“I never expected for me to be in this situation, but I did what I had to do to go home to my kids.”
From the information provided, it seems Dilyard had every right to defend herself. There’s no telling what would have happened to her that evening if she had not done so.
From Blau’s comments, it looks like 7-Eleven felt Dilyard was too much of a liability to keep employed, but what was she supposed to do?
Would the company rather she die and then find themselves embroiled in a lawsuit with her family after they sue for her wrongful death, stating 7-Eleven did not provide her with adequate on-site security?
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