MEMPHIS, Tenn. — A Memphis business owner will spend several years on probation after he pled guilty to the 2019 shooting death of a suspected shoplifter in his store, according to court records.
Charles Kalb was sentenced to seven years on probation, and a seven-year suspended jail sentence, after pleading guilty to voluntary manslaughter on April 28 and possession of a prohibited weapon on May 1.
Kalb had originally been indicted by a grand jury for murder in the 2019 case where he shot and killed a man he saw pick up a chainsaw and attempt to run out of his store, but pled guilty to the lesser charge of manslaughter.
The shooting happened about 1:30 p.m. on October 16, 2019, at Mid-South Small Engines in the 2600 block of Mt. Moriah in Fox Meadows.
The Shelby County District Attorney General’s Office said 59-year-old Kalb saw 33-year-old Lamorris Robinson pick up a chainsaw and run out of the store. Prosecutors said surveillance video showed Kalb grabbed a shotgun from under the counter and ran after Robinson, then shot him in the back outside the store.
Robinson was taken to the hospital but died from his injuries.
Not long after the shooting, an attorney for the family said Robinson had spent time in prison and was recently released. At the time, he said a lawsuit was possible as the case continued, and that a person has no right to kill when there is no physical threat present.
Kalb will remain out of jail, but could see as much as seven years in jail on the suspended sentence if he commits a crime during his probation.
