Deaf Man Sues Tandy Corp. in Assault at Radio Shack.

Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News

Feb. 6 -- FORT WORTH, Texas -- A deaf man in Reston, Va., has sued Tandy Corp. for $1 million, alleging that a Radio Shack store clerk assaulted him when the customer was trying to buy batteries for his hearing aid.

Radio Shack fired the clerk, who was later convicted of assault and sentenced to 10 days in jail and a $1,000 fine, said Michael Gannon, who claims he suffered a head injury and other ailments from the attack. The incident occurred in August 1995 in a Virginia suburb, and the suit is scheduled for trial next month.

Gannon, who said Tandy refused to apologize or pay his medical bills, is promoting a boycott of Radio Shack, saying the company should train employees in how to deal with hearing-impaired customers. "Nothing has been changed to prevent this from happening again," Gannon, 39, said in a telephone interview yesterday. "They're selling products for the hearing-impaired, so Tandy should at least be training people to deal with customers like me. But basically, they're telling me to get lost."

A spokesman at Tandy declined to comment, saying the company does not discuss pending litigation.

Gannon's story has been described in newspapers near his hometown, including the "Reston Times" and "The Washington Post," and this week he distributed a news release to media nationwide, calling for support for the Radio Shack boycott.

Gannon said the incident occurred on a Saturday night when his hearing aid batteries went dead. He went to a Radio Shack and took four packages of batteries to the counter. The clerk, Donald Boseman, asked for identification when Gannon paid with a credit card, Gannon said. Then, Gannon said, the clerk appeared to question his signature.