When beating a man into submission with the weapon he’d just threatened you with, it’s sometimes better to go ahead and kill him. That way he can’t trouble you with frivolous lawsuits. For the two former employees of a Rochester, N.Y., auto parts shop, the tip comes too late.

Plaintiff Dana Buckman had already served a dozen years in the pen when, clearly not rehabilitated, he sauntered into the AutoZone, pointed a gun at Eli Crespo and Jerry Vega and demanded cash. Forcing the two out the back door, Buckman fled out the front. His escape route, however, led him around back, where Crespo and Vega pounced on him, took his gun and gave him a thorough working over.

Now with 18 years’ worth of time to consider his actions, the best Buckman has come up with is a suit against the shop he tried to rob, claiming emotional distress.

While Buckman’s lawyer insists this is a serious lawsuit, few agree.

“You wonder,” says AutoZone attorney Patrick B. Naylon, “if a case like this even needs a defence.”

» Scott Saxon