Walmart wackos fought cop and witness to theft

In the early evening a couple of days after Christmas, an off-duty Chattanooga police officer was attacked by shoplifters when the cop tried to stop the theft.

Officer Josh Wright was leaving a Walmart store after shopping when he saw a man trying to force his way past a greeter with a shopping cart loaded with televisions and a computer. When Walmart loss prevention officers tried to stop the man, he forced his way past them and refused to produce his receipt, according to police.

At this point Officer Wright stepped in, identified himself as a Chattanooga Police officer and showed his badge. The man looked at the badge, declared it to be a fake and tried to get by Officer Wright.

Officer Wright then forced suspect Joseph Hill to the floor and placed him under arrest.

Within minutes the arrest, the suspect’s wife, identified as Lisa Hill, began acting as if she was having a heart attack and stated she did not know the suspect.

A witness then told Officer Wright that she had seen Mr. and Mrs. Hill in the store together. The witness began to leave the store when Mrs. Hill became belligerent and began calling the witness a liar and threatening her. Mrs. Hill followed the witness to the parking lot, grabbed her by her hair, threw her to the ground and began hitting her.

Police said the witness got a pocket knife from her purse and stabbed Mrs. Hill in the arm in order to get her off her. Mrs. Hill was taken to a local hospital, treated for minor injuries and released.

The woman who stabbed Mrs. Hill declined to press charges, and surveillance video from Walmart confirmed the witness’s statements.

Mr. Hill was charged with theft over $1,000 and assault on a police officer. The investigation into Mrs. Hill’s actions still is open. (info from Chattanooga Times Free Press)