A Pensacola man has been sentenced to more than 17 years in prison for attacking his girlfriend inside a Family Dollar store, according to court records.
Prosecutors said 31-year-old Derrick Harris got into an argument with the victim inside the Pensacola store on Feb. 19. After leaving, he returned as she was checking out and punched her in the face when store employees told him to leave. While the victim was on the phone with 911, Harris came back, knocked her to the floor and struck her several times; the assault was captured on surveillance cameras.
Store employees tried to intervene, and a manager grabbed a baseball bat and ordered everyone behind her. Harris took the bat and swung it at the victim’s head, missing and striking bottles of wine and other items before leaving the store.