Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
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Alex Cabrero Reporting"But once he punched her, I knew I had to act."
This man was in the right place at the right time, which means another man was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Justin John Peterson was only out of jail for a couple of hours and must've missed it; police say the first thing he did after getting out of jail was steal from a Sandy 7-11 store. That's not the only thing he did.
One of the store clerks from the 7-11 went outside to confront him about stealing cigarettes. He turned around and punched her, and would've hit her again if not for a good Samaritan who knows something about self defense.
Surveillance video shows Justin John Peterson walking into the Sandy 7-11 and James Sjostrom walking in right behind him. The two never met before, but soon they'd become well acquainted. Peterson went right to the counter.
Sgt. Victor Quezada, Sandy Police Dept.: "He asked the clerk for a carton of cigarettes. The clerk provides them. At that time, he turns and walks out the door."
The problem is, he walked out without paying for his cigarettes. A clerk went right after him.
Sgt. Victor Quezada: "He then gets very aggressive with her and charges her. He takes one swing with his fist and hits her in the face."
James Sjostrom immediately ran outside to help. Peterson tried to punch him, but missed. In no time, Sjostrom had him down.
James Sjostrom: "I just grabbed him and threw him on the ground and sat on him and waited for the police to arrive."
Doing what Sjostrom did would be scary for many of us, but not him, he's done this before.
James Sjostrom: "I was trained in the marines as a close combat instructor, so I'm pretty familiar with takedown techniques."
He's a marine, who is also a self-defense instructor. Peterson never had a chance.
James Sjostrom: "It just came kind of natural. I really didn't think about it."
He also never thought about letting him go until police arrived.
James Sjostrom: "As I was sitting on him, a guy came up and offered to help. He said he was in the army, and I just said, 'Wel, the marines got here first.'"
Peterson is now back in jail with not much to show for his two hours of freedom. The clerk has a cut above her eye but will be okay. As for Sjostrom, he did what a lot of us guys only dream about doing.
