A St. Louis man who was working at the Taco Bell, 1932 Richardson Road, in Arnold and got into a dispute with a customer is facing felony and misdemeanor charges for allegedly shooting the customer in the restaurant’s drive-thru lane, according to court records.
Herbert Williams Harris, 24, of St. Louis was charged Dec. 1 by the Jefferson County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office with first-degree assault causing serious physical injury, a class A felony that carries a penalty of 10 to 30 years or life in prison; armed criminal action, an unclassified penalty punishable by three to 15 years in prison; and fourth-degree assault, a class A misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in jail and a possible fine of up to $2,000, court documents show.
As of Dec. 9, Harris was being held without bond at the Jefferson County Jail in Hillsboro.
Police got a call at approximately 2:35 a.m. Nov. 27 about the shooting involving Harris and a 46-year-old Imperial man, who also fired a gun during the dispute. Both men were injured in the shooting and taken to Mercy Hospital South in south St. Louis County with non-life-threatening injuries, Arnold Police reported.
According to the probable-cause statement in the case, Harris and the customer got into an argument through the drive-thru speaker because the restaurant would not serve the man. The report did not say why the restaurant, which typically would have been open to 3 a.m. that morning, would not serve the customer.
After the argument through the speaker, Harris allegedly went outside and confronted the customer in the drive-thru, lane, the report said.
The customer reportedly could not drive away because his vehicle was blocked by vehicles in front and behind him, and the restaurant’s building was on the left and a concrete wall was on the right, according to the report.
Harris allegedly challenged the customer to a fight, and when the man didn’t get out of his vehicle, Harris went back inside. However, Harris allegedly came back out with a gun in the waistband of his pants, the report said.
A woman who was in the vehicle with the customer in the drive-thru got out while Harris and the customer argued, and Harris allegedly hit the woman in the face and pushed her away before threatening to get into the passenger-side of the vehicle, the report said.
Then, the customer got out of his vehicle, holding a gun against the right side of his body so Harris wouldn’t see it. He reportedly told Harris not to approach him, but Harris allegedly pulled out the gun and held it in his right hand while approaching the customer, who allegedly shot at Harris once time, hitting him in the right leg. Harris then allegedly fired several shots at the customer, who also was struck in his right leg, according to the report.
The customer required surgery, the report said.
Officers discovered Harris is serving five years’ probation after a sentence he received for first-degree robbery was suspended in January 2020. That incident stemmed from a May 2019 incident in St. Louis, the probable-cause statement said.