Who kicks a man over $35 in meat?

Every once in a while you come across one of those heartwarming stories where a little old shop owner turns the tables on a thief and puts him in his place. That's what I thought I was going to see when I read this headline in today's Sentinel and Enterprise:

Police: Store manager kicked thief in face

But then I read the story and found out this was not quite the warm fuzzy story I was expecting:

FITCHBURG -- A Market Basket manager faces a felony charge for allegedly kicking a repeat shoplifter in the face, according to police.

William Clark, 31, is charged with assault and battery with a dangerous weapon (his shoe) for allegedly kicking Eric J. Casson, 20, of 161 West St., after police placed Casson under arrest, according to court documents. Officers struggled with Casson, finally getting him on the ground and in handcuffs, according to police.

"(Casson) had already been handcuffed and was in a prone position when (Clark) kicked him," officer Keith Bourne wrote in a statement of facts filed in Fitchburg District Court.

Wait, wait, wait...so the manager of the store kicked the alleged thief in the mug while the police pinned the cuffed man on the floor? Did the guy think this was some sort of TV show where the police would be OK with this?

So I imagine that Mr. Clark must have had a good reason to kick the guy. This burglar must be a real bad man:

Employees watched as Casson and Lapointe allegedly took approximately $35 in meat, Fossa said. Casson took beef while Lapointe took pork, Fossa said.

The thief got a shoe in his mug over $35 worth of meat? Who kicks a defenseless man in the face over $35 of meat? There isn't a whole lot that will cause me to sympathize with shoplifters, but that seems to be a bit much.

And now the store manager is facing felony assault charges while the meat snatchers are are off with a fairly minor shoplifting charge.

Tags: Massachusetts Fitchburg Crime Meat