Father charged with murder after beating man who entered bathroom stall with his daughter
A Phoenix father who claims he was protecting his teenage daughter from a predator has been charged with murder for killing the man who tried to burst into the bathroom stall his daughter was using.
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Melvin Harris is now behind bars charged with second-degree murder, after killing Leon Armstrong for trying to break into a QuikTrip bathroom stall that his 16-year-old daughter was occupying.
According to the Phoenix Police Department, Harris stopped at the QuikTrip convenience store to allow his daughter and her friends to use the bathroom after picking them up from work, the Daily Mail reports.
Harris was reportedly waiting in his car for the three girls, when a man identified as Armstrong, asked him for some cash. Harris handed the man some money. Armstrong then went inside the store, reported ABC15.
Harris’ daughter alerted him that the man tried to break into her bathroom stall and was shaking the door. The father urged a security guard at the QuikTrip to “take care of the situation, or he would do it himself.”
The guard told Harris he would handle the situation. However, the father spotted Armstrong as he was leaving the convenience store and approached him about the matter.
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According to witness accounts, Harris punched Armstrong multiple times in the face until he collapsed. He also allegedly kicked and stomped on him as he lay on the ground. Harris reportedly left the scene as a critically injured Armstrong lay on the ground.
Once confronted by police, Harris admitted to hitting Armstrong, but said he threw the first punch and he denied severely beating him down.
Armstrong died five days later from his injuries.
Harris’ fiancee, Diana Jackson, told 3TV/CBS5, in an interview that she supports his actions.
“I’m not mad at him, I don’t feel like he did anything wrong. I love him. He did what he was supposed to do for our kid. You cannot tell someone they’re wrong for protecting their children,” Jackson told the station.
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