License revoked: Common council votes to close Milwaukee gas station where man was fatally shot

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- The Milwaukee Common Council on Tuesday, Oct. 10 voted unanimously to revoke the license of Teutonia Gas and Food. It's the gas station where, back in August 29-year-old Isaiah Allen was shot and killed by an armed security guard after allegedly stealing snack cakes.

The guard, William Pinkin, had been convicted of a previous felony meaning he was not authorized to have a weapon.

City leaders have called the gas station a threat to health and safety and Allen's family has spent the last month-and-a-half protesting to make sure it does not reopen.

The gas station's owner, Gurinder Nagra, was not in attendance at Tuesday meeting but his lawyers did provide the common council with a written objection to the recommendation that the gas station should be closed.

In a statement to CBS 58, Nagra's lawyer, Emil Ovbiagele, shared this on his client's behalf:

"The distressing incident involving Isaiah Allen at our gas station remains an agonizing memory, and we extend our deepest condolences to his family.

The recent decision by the Common Council, not only affirms the Licensing Committee’s stance but also underscores a concerning trajectory: a hasty rush to hold a hearing which, by our assessment, lacked legal grounds. It’s deeply unsettling to witness the city bypassing established legal processes. Court precedents clearly demand that all licensees be accorded substantive and procedural due process. Yet, what we’ve witnessed is a process seemingly aimed at deflecting from deeper systemic issues. A business, operating within the bounds of the law, shouldn’t become a scapegoat for larger community challenges.

The current climate in which political will seems to overshadow genuine legal processes poses considerable challenges. The unpredictable nature of this system is making the cost and conditions of doing business in Milwaukee increasingly untenable. We are reviewing all our options to ensure that constitutional bedrock principles fairness, and due process are upheld.

Milwaukee’s future hinges on actions rooted in genuine problem-solving and understanding, not on snap judgments or political convenience. Let’s collaboratively focus on laying the groundwork for a safer, inclusive, and prosperous city."

Emil Ovbiagele

Attorney, OVB Law and Consulting

While happy with the decision, Allen's mother says nothing will bring her son back.

“It was senseless and what I’m trying to prevent is another child growing up without a parent there the way my son’s kids have to grow up without him being here...and the way we got to deal with my son not being here, that’s what I’m trying to prevent," said Natalie Easter-Allen, Isaiah's mother.

Allen was a father of two.