Man acquitted of robbing Blacksburg convenience store at gunpoint

Bryan C. Bridges

It may have only been a few inches, but it apparently was enough of a discrepancy for a Cherokee County jury to acquit a Charlotte man of an armed robbery charge.

Bryan Christopher Bridges, 19, was accused of robbing the Southern Convenience store at 1326 Blacksburg Highway at 8 p.m. on Sept. 23, 2004. The jury found him not guilty following a daylong General Sessions Court trial.

Inconsistent testimony from a store clerk helped the defense win the case.

"The whole case turned on her identification," said public defender Don Thompson. "It wasn't consistent with the defendant sitting at that table."

A 42-year-old clerk identified Bridges as one of two black men who entered the store armed with a weapon and forced her to open both registers. They made the woman lie on the floor before leaving the store.

The clerk told police one of the robbers was just a touch taller than her. She's 5 foot, 3 inches tall. She testified Tuesday that she was wearing high-heeled shoes the day of the robbery, making her 5 foot, 6 inches tall.

A written statement from the clerk fails to mention the assailant's height and instead includes a clothing description.

Thompson focused on the height discrepancy, telling the jury that his client was 6 feet, 2 inches tall, much taller than the person the clerk described.

Bridges still faces charges of receiving stolen goods and unlawful possession of a firearm in an unrelated case.