Overview
- Two hooded men entered a Midtown St. Louis Starbucks in December 2023 and tried to rob the store while staff and a customer were inside.
- Security video released in mid‑June 2026 shows employees Michael Harris and a coworker confronting the pair, restraining one suspect while the other fled.
- The footage captures a break in the robber’s gun trigger that employees say revealed the weapon was fake, which they say prompted them to fight back.
- Both suspects, identified as Joshua Noe and Marquise Porter‑Doyle, were later convicted and sentenced to prison, and Harris sued Starbucks for wrongful termination in 2024.
- Starbucks says its training tells partners to comply and de‑escalate and framed the firings as enforcement of safety protocols, a stance that the video and the pending 2027 jury trial have put under public scrutiny and could affect employer policies and litigation over worker safety.