Family Attacked for not Letting Man Hold Phone

Temple, Texas — A man is recovering after he was attacked for not letting another man hold his phone to make a call.

According to Eric Holder, he and his family were eating dinner at Raising Cane’s Chicken Fingers located at 2304 S. 31st St. at around 7 p.m., when he was approached by a man who asked if he could use his phone to call a ride.

Holder said he agreed to help but said that since he didn’t know the other man, he held the phone on speaker so he could make the call.

After the call was completed, the victim’s attorney, Scott Crivelli said the other man asked Holder why he didn’t let him hold the phone to make the call.

Holder responded, “I don’t know you personally, but I was happy to help you call for your ride.”

The unidentified man then turned and left the restaurant, but a short time later 21-year-old Christian Watts, who police say is the brother of the first man, entered the restaurant and started a verbal altercation, claiming Holder was racist.

“[The attacker] threw a punch that struck Eric’s wife on the forehead and connected with Mr. Holder’s jaw, knocking him to the ground,” said Holder’s attorney.

During the ensuing fight which lasted approximately 10 minutes, Holder sustained several cuts and bruises and a dislocated left shoulder.

Holder said he repeatedly asked the store manager to help or at least call police, but was told by the manager that they would not do anything to assist because a firearm was involved.

“The manager was standing there in the middle of the floor as I was fighting this individual, begging him [the manager] to help,” said Holder.

The victim then drew the gun he is licensed to carry concealed and used it to halt the attack and a call to 911 was finally placed by Holder’s daughter while he and his son-in-law held Watts at gunpoint.

Police soon arrived to take control of the situation and Watts was arrested and charged with assault causing bodily injury. Holder and his wife were taken to the hospital for treatment of their injuries and Holder required an MRI to examine the extent of the damage.

“I dislocated my shoulder. I got bruised ribs from it,” Holder told KCENTV. “All because I didn’t hand over my cellphone.”

Holder and his wife both expressed anger over how the situation was handled by the manager of Raising Cane’s,

“We didn’t want this,” said Mrs. Holder. “We were just there trying to eat a meal we didn’t even get to eat. We didn’t even get that far. We just want Raising Cane’s to do what’s right, and to tell us why we didn’t get adequate help.”

Raising Cane’s corporate office denied any wrongdoing by their employees, saying the manager did place the call to 911. In a statement to KCENTV 6 News, Vice President of Company Restaurants Tommy Van Wolfe said the manager was following company policy by refusing to help Holder and his family:

“Once our crew realized the situation our manager called 911. He ensured other customers left the restaurant quickly and followed procedure by not getting involved in the physical altercation.”

“We want to reiterate our sincere apology to them for what they experienced and hope they take us up on our offer for crisis counselor services,” Van Wolfe’s statement says.

Holder said he sought the services of Mr. Crivelli in the event that Raising Cane’s attempts to pursue legal matters against him for violating company policies by carrying a legally concealed handgun into their establishment.

“It is our understanding that Raising Cane’s prohibits lawful carry of firearms in stores in at least four states,” Crivelli said. “Had that policy been in effect here, who knows how the situation could have concluded.”


This situation shows how important it may be to train how to shoot with only one hand. If you are injured in a fight, shot, stabbed, or otherwise assaulted, you may only have the ability to shoot with one hand making first round hits more difficult.

Also highlighted is why self-defense insurance, which provides financial assistance in the after math of self defense, might be a good idea. CCW Safe is one of the best and worthy of a look.

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