Greensburg man cited after outburst in store over mask, social distancing

A Greensburg man who became enraged after being told to leave a store for failing to wear a mask and social distance is accused by city police of making threats against employees and knocking over merchandise as he departed.

Police on Tuesday charged Derek P. Hart Jr., 21, with multiple counts of disorderly conduct and harassment and single counts of criminal mischief and violating state health orders for failing to wear a mask. The incident took place Friday afternoon at the Family Dollar store in the Greensburg Shopping Center on East Pittsburgh Street.

Hart is believed to be the first person charged in Greensburg for not wearing a mask since Gov. Tom Wolf proclaimed a pandemic emergency March 6, police said.

“This is the first time we’ve had to charge someone here that I’m aware of. Most people have been responsive to the social distancing and mask wearing out of respect for others in my experience over the last few months,” Capt. Shawn Denning said. “I’ve heard of people complaining over the mask-wearing requirement, but this went a lot further than that, according to multiple witnesses.”

When contacted Tuesday, Hart admitted to the outburst but said it occurred only after a store clerk was the aggressor and “physically” grabbed detergent pods out of his hands as she ordered him to leave.

“There was no outburst until she got physical with me,” said Hart, who claimed he was not the only customer in the store without a facial covering. “But I was the only one singled out. … I was already leaving the store when she got physical with me.”

Police reported that Hart entered the store with a woman and picked up multiple items and headed to the cash register.

An employee was checking out an elderly female customer ahead of Hart and noticed he and his companion were standing close behind the woman, Officer Henry Fontana said. The employee asked the pair to move back to the designated social distancing mark 6 feet away on the floor.

Hart said he might have been close to the woman ahead of him, but that was because so many others were also in line.

Hart said he intends to go to court to fight the complaints, which were sent via mailed summons.

When asked to move, police allege that Hart began yelling obscenities toward the employee and refused to move.

“(Hart) stated ‘(expletive) you, I’m a grown (expletive) man,’” Fontana stated in court documents.

A manager then noticed that Hart was not wearing a face covering and asked him to leave the store, Fontana said. All customers are required to wear masks.

According to police reports, Hart continued yelling at the employees, “causing alarm to multiple customers in the store.”

Police said that Hart threw the laundry pods across the checkout counter, striking an assistant manager. Police allege he also knocked over counter displays as he headed toward the exit, “continuing to yell obscenities at the managers.”

According to police, when Hart got outside the store, he pounded on the glass window as he made his way to his car with his companion and drove away.

Because Hart left without buying anything, police checked discount stores in the area and found a car matching the description at a Dollar General on South Main Street, near the police station. A man matching Hart’s description was shopping inside.

Fontana reported that Hart admitted to being involved in the incident at the Family Dollar.