Slap On Wrist For Perp In Slurpee Battery Case

NOVEMBER 10--A 7-Eleven patron has gotten off with a slap on the wrist after pleading guilty to a felony charge for dousing a store employee with a Slurpee during a dispute over the icy treat’s price.

Brian Duffy, 40, was arrested in late-July after he slapped a Slurpee out of the hand of a female worker at a 7-Eleven in Pinellas Park, Florida. The frozen drink, a patrolman reported, “flew onto the victim’s person” around 9:20 AM.

A store surveillance camera recorded Duffy “back handing the cup full of a Slurpee drink” out of the convenience store worker’s hand. When questioned by cops, Duffy denied swatting the Slurpee from the victim’s grasp, though he did admit there was “an incident” in which he “was being charged too much for a drink.”

The charge filed against Duffy was upped to felony battery since his rap sheet included a prior misdemeanor battery conviction. He also has convictions for an assortment of other crimes, including theft; trespassing; cocaine possession; violating a protective order; possession of synthetic marijuana; violating probation; and leaving the scene of an auto crash.

During a recent court appearance, Duffy (seen above) added to his conviction pile by pleading guilty to a third-degree felony for the Slurpee battery. While the count carries a statutory maximum of five years in prison, Duffy was sentenced to the five days he had already spent in the county jail prior to posting his $2500 bond.

A sentencing scoresheet signed by a Circuit Court judge included the notation “COVID-19” next to a box indicating that Duffy was receiving a “Time Served” sentence. In light of the ongoing pandemic, judges nationwide have been hesitant to increase jail populations.

Duffy was also directed to pay $1102 in court fines and fees. He was previously ordered by a judge to have no contact with the victim, and he must also stay away from the 7-Eleven where the Slurpee battery occurred. (2 pages)