WalMart ripoff Nationwide loss prevention scam Reaching out to anyone that has had a similar situation with any walmart anywhere. Dry Ridge Kentucky

Response is for Cynthia in Concord North Carolina.
I was recently terminated and was a salary manager 7 months shy of full pension. I was harassed in August by LP DM and again last week. I turned in an associate for integrity she eventually got fired the following day myself and another associate were drilled by LP DM like we were on trial for a crime and he was Hitler. It's so long to even really explain. Since Cynthia was an LP and I didn't read why she got fired so I don't know her circumstances. I was not LP. I although made alot of money and had outstanding reviews as well as manager of the year in 2003/04.
The associate who was terminated was vendictive and was the type to retaliate if crossed. Everything mentioned by LP DM was only information that that associate would only know. She was mad at another associate for taking a position that she felt she deserved and on myself for not giving her that position. The only people that were questioned by LP was the 2 of us.
I was fired she believes she is next. I am taking this further and probably shouldn't say anymore. Any insite would help - Cynthia - you mentioned about cameras or video of the interragation? I had neither - is this a policy and if so where can I find it. Thanks

It amazes me that anyone can be taking Criminal Justice classes and not have learned the "innocent until proven guilty" by having it drilled into their head. As a AF veteran with a AFSC in LEO/SP I can tell you one thing. Lay hands on me or detain me without hard proof and you'll be wishing you were actually awake during your professor's classes.

It's very simple, if you didn't do anything wrong...ask if they are accussing you of breaking a law. If they so no, walk away. There isn't a d**n thing they can do other than call the police. (read that again Nick...if you didn't do anything wrong) If they say yes, ask them what crime they are accussing you of and if they are detaining you. Offer them nothing. Advise them to call the police if they haven't already. You don't have to answer any questions or allow them to search you or your bags until the police arrive. I'd start getting names and numbers of witnesses...you'd be surprised how many will be standing around. Once the police arrive you can opt to refuse to answer questions and ask for an attorney to be present if you wish. But following the theroy that you didn't do anything wrong...cooperate with the police, at this point the police are all you have to answer to. Once the police clear you (remember we are under the impression you did nothing wrong) I'd press wrongful detainment and, heaven forbid if you grabbed my arm or forcefully touched me, assult charges. Remember those witnesses you collected? Good, smile and put them to use.

Remeber Nick, not everyone is guilty just because you think they are. And to answer your question before you ask, Air Force Veteran, Security Police with degrees in Comp. Science, Criminal Justice and Psyc. and currently a programmer working in Congative Science field.

-Knowing your rights is your responsibility...righting your no(s) is mine- Pickerton

Ok I only read a few of these.. I used to work for wal-mart and I was a CSM (customer service manager) I left on good terms so in no way is this a personal vendeta from me.

About the woman who was arrested for the curtains. IF you request to see a tape.. the must show you the tape. That is one of your right. if you went to court then wal-mart must present the tape to the courts.. As for the girl who claimed she saw you. If at any point at time she lost eye contact with you.. It is not valid. Once the Manage said that it happens alot.. that should of been the end of it. As for the cameras. All those black bubbles hanging down do not have cameras. only about 15% of them. so there was a good chance they did not have any video.

As for the persons with the the wal-mart discount card. I have found that wal-mart does alot to make its money. If anyone should of got in trouble because of your discount card. it should of been the cashier that checked them out and used the card. How does anyone know that your card was not lifted. If you were with your firends when you checked out and used your card. Then it is a valid purchase with the discount card as long as you handed the money to the cashier. There is no way they can force you to sign a paper saying you did it. and threaten you with the police unless they had physical proof that it was your fault. They cannot force you to take fault without a lawyer involved. I seen where you had to pay 400/m for years. how much stuff actually came out the of the store.. Wal-mart made 486 billion last year 2004.. there is a reason.. Since they are running alot of business out they have plenty of employees to chose from. My personal opinion... wal-mart needs to be unionized. They have way too much control on who does what. about a year after I left wal-mart. Bunch of people i worked with were contacting me about wages and working off the clock, being forced to lose overtime when forced to work it. been forced to work without breaks or lunches. So i told them I would call wage and labor. well I had about 31 people that wanted to do something.. wage and labor would not touch wal-mart. Its funny what a few million a year donation will do for you.
On any given day, between 1000-5000 or more walk out of the store. I have seen managers and assistant managers take items out of the store without paying for them.

Here is a true story.. this took place in dothan alabama and the southside wal-mart.

the manager (will not name is name) did what was called padding pallets. basically lying about inventory and loss to get a bigger return. along with making employees work off the clock and without breaks and forced to lose forced overtime.. the store made millions of that. The IRS came in and audited that store thanks to me.(this was after i left) Home office demoted him down 2 steps and moved him to another store after the audit. and payed the fines which were well below what he made from doing that in the first place.
6 or 7 month later. Home office re-promoted him to manager and moved him to florida into a home and a brand new store. come to find out he is very good at this and has been doing for a while but they move the managers from state to state after they get cought.
this tells you what they will do to make money.
If it were me. I would not shop at wal-mart any more for the simple fact is that if ya keep doing it..K-mart sear win dixi (who just filed bankrupt protection) and other store we all shop at will not be around. Then wal mart will not have to worry about low prices and fair employment.
I prefer to shop at places that are honest.
another true story
if a business wants to place there items in wal mart. wal mart tells them how much they will buy it for. do the math. pretty soon everything will be "sams Choice"

Also if ya by electronic. Be careful this has happened to me several time. what you buy is not always new. It is against the law to sell open merchandise with a new price.

To be convicted of stealing, the alleged thief must have the intent to deprive the victim of their property.

Now, simply overlooking an item on the bottom of a shopping cart doesn't create a presumption of theft. This can be an oversight and occurs many times.

In fact, customers can unintentionally fail to pay for items. We were at Super Walmart and had a devil of a time with the self-checkout. It kept locking up and not ringing.

Our last item seemed to ring but actually didn't. The clerk thought it rang too and waved OK.

When the buzzer rang, the greeter helped us bring the item to the CS desk where it was checked out with an apology to us for the inconvenience.

These employees did their job properly.

If the person with the item under their cart was arrested, somebody screwed up big time. They need to get legal advice.

Some LP's are really stupid. My son was 17 and worked in a grocery store. Without any proof, LP simply called people into the back and accused them of theft just to see if they'd fess up to something.

My son's a God-fearing boy who never stole in his life. He told the LP that he was not a thief and, if there were more questions, they needed to ask them with our family attorney present.

The jerk LP then backed off and asked my son if he knew if anyone else was stealing. My son did not have any information.

He kept his job, but he and most of the good employees soon left, not wanting to work for such a bunch of fools.

Just wanted to start off by thanking Stanley for his response. I actually did go to court with a lawyer. I am going to the court today to pick up the transcript for the case. And I am going for an appeal because nothing made sense. My lawyer has already told me that this is an uphill battle. Yes, I have spend a lot of money already. Nevertheless, I am going to have to continue to do so because there is no way I can admit to something that I did not do.

Melanie, I am sorry this happened to you. The thing that you are going to have trouble in court explaining is why did you not put the curtain back into the same box you took it out from and then paid for it. And if you did so, they don't have any reason to stop you let alone call the police. After all, you did go to the register and pay for it. In regards to the video tape, forget about it. If you read my story, they will never provide any video tape that will help your case. It is just a lawsuit waiting to happen.

Unfortunately, it seems like Walmart has the power to arrest/convict someone with their employee's words alone. I did a little bit of research on ripoffreport.com. If you plug in other competitors of Walmart, IE, Kmart, target, or Sears, sure, you have your normal complaints, but nothing as outrageous as wrongful arrest complaints.

Maybe people who shop at other stores don't steal, perhaps other stores don't have the same type of quality security measurements as Walmart, or maybe other store employees just don't care. There could be a lot of different scenarios as to why other stores don't have the same kind of complaints. One thing for sure, Walmart is the biggest company in the US. According to a show about Walmart on CNBC, they actually have more money than Microsoft and GE. So maybe they have the kind of power to influence the townships to ignore certain things that violates basic civil liberty? Then again, it is all about who you know. It you are someone important, I am sure you wouldn't have to deal with this kind of treatment.

In case you and anyone else is wondering why you are not getting much help from the lawyers? The fact of the matter is, Walmart has a system in place that hires the most ambitious lawyers and never settle on any cases. Thus, very few lawyers are inclined to go against Walmart.
I wish there was a lawyer that specialized in these type of cases against Walmart. We really need to work as a group and fight the injustice. It would be great for a qualified lawyer to advertise with ripoffreport.com on this page.

Good luck to all seeking for justice.

I posted my story on 2-7-05. But here it goes...I was shopping at Walmart as i usually do on a saturday. I was with my husband and 2 nephews, we split up and I headed off to the wondow coverings isle. I was looking for curtains(gold in color) I noticed ALOT of opened packages on the shelves as well as curtains everywhere.

So I sifted throough and found a few that I liked. I opened them up and was looking to see the difference in color or fabric and then the length. I then put each back in the package, took the one I wanted and was on my way. I met up with my husband and we did a little more shopping and then checked out.

I paid $75.18 for all our stuf and before I got outside a Mgr. stopped me to see if she could view my receipt. I said sure, then all of the sudden this young girl rushed on the side of us bumped into my husband and grabbed the bag out of our hand and the receipt.

She looked and said yup, she did it, she switched the curtains to get the more expensive one for the cheaper price. I said, umm no I didnt I was looking at some curtains all the same color and maybe they got switched accidentally, but not intentionally.

The Mgr said you know this happens alot to customers and it is an honest mistake, the other girl said NO, I saw her, I saw her.

So at this point I am pissed as well as my husband who now is demanding to see the video. She of course said hell no to that, It was private and none of us would see it.

She then asked me to walk over to the CS desk and they had already called the police. I was in shock when I heard this, I could not beleive this was happening.

So the cop arrived and asked my husband to leave with my nephews and they escorted me to the back room. He asked for my ID, and called it in, of course nothing came back because I have never done anything wrong, I am 31 and have had a speeding ticket is all.

SO then the girl and the cop walked outside and were laughing and chatting(they knew each other by the way) Then another cop entered asked me what happened I told him, he walked back out for like 10 seconds and came back and said I saw the tape, you had 2 curtains.

I said yes amd your point. He said why did u take them out, I told him I was checking length, color etc. Keep in mind the curtains were a difference of 11.40. I told him I wanted to cheaper curtain anyways.

Never did anyone ever remove the curtain either, they all went based solely on what she saw! They all came back in asked me to stand up put my hands behind my back and that the girl was placing a citizens arrest on me, and that because they were present they had to take me downtown.

I at this point was balling and scared asking about my nephews and my husband. I said do I get a chnace to explain, nope they said you can in court though.

So they paraded me out in front of all the customers and while they were walking behind me I overheard one cop say and I quote" hey as far as the video, it will be a he said she said type of deal", so right then I knew they werent there for me. they put me in the car, and I heard again sign right here for the video just to cover our asses.

I was then after 40 minutes of sitting taken to jail were I was photographed, finger printed and put back in a holding cell barefoot. Plus I had to have my husband run around and try and scrape up $542.00 cash for my bail.

I finally was releaed at 7:10 pm after 5 hours of living hell. I now cannot go to any walmart and I have court in 30 days.

This was the most hellish, humiliating thing I have ever been through. My questions are these...what can i do?, can they put me in jail once i go to court? Is there really a tape? How can i get it? Please help me out..

Frank,

Sad to say, but the reality of America today is:

Justice costs money, how much justice do you want?

I remember when I worked for my county and right across the street was the county courthouse complex, they called it the Justice Center. When people would tell me about how they were being shafted and wanted justice, I would tell them to go across the street to the Justice Center and tell them you want some justice and ask them how to get it. Bring lots of money was the answer they got!

I think you learned a valuable lesson. Do *not* go to court without a lawyer unless the outcome is trivial, such as a parking ticket or some other meaningless offense. Never expect the judge to obey the law because he may or he may not. It's his courtroom, after all. I have seen this happen so many times with my own eyes.

Will you get justice with a lawyer? Maybe not, but you've got a heck of a lot better chance with one than without one.

I learned the hard way to never walk into a courtroom without a lawyer when the the results could be lifelong. It is expensive to fix.

Unfortunately, you are now a convicted thief. That is a tough thing to say but look at it from another point of view. It is the legal truth and if you ever get in trouble again that is exactly how the prosecutor is going to describe you -- after all, you stole something and got caught and then you were convicted of it fair and square in a court of law.

You might want to see a lawyer and appeal or get this charge removed somehow. I would. It could cause problems in the future when you go for a good job and they run a background on you. After all, it didn't happen when you were 13 years old. You're a grown man now.

Never go to court without a lawyer on a charge like that.

I have really enjoyed reading all the posts here about walmart,
Let me begin by saying a week or so before this happened i was getting a ring for a birthday gift along with other item,i had slipped the ring on my little finger and forgot about till after i paid and was in my car, i went back in to the store told them what happened we had a good laugh while i payed for it.Now about a wek later(i'm in walmart 4 to 5 times a week}my hubby,son who was 28 at the time and i we had just closed our shop up and went to wally world to get my son a TV as his went out we had alot of stuff we picked up that night ended up being over 800.00 at the check out we joked with the cashier like we have done for over 10 years { small town everyone knows everyone}we walked out both doors no alarm went off and we was surrounded by 3 walmart employes, we ask what was wrong and was asked to come to the back of the store we did they accussed of of shop lifting we asked what item was taken and no one would tell us they kept saying our son had shopped lifted which was strange the only time he was out of my sight was when he went to grab a shower curtin he wife asked for.they said they had him on tape funny that store didn't have tapes at the time and we knew it we told them they could pat us down they wouldn't they just kept hammering at us and finally thought if thye split us up that would work and that was thier mistake 911 does work we called the police they came and wanted to know what was going on and was told that our son took bicyle handle bar grips well my son looked at the guy and asked with a straight face "what would i want them for to put on the shifter of mt car" the cop found that very funny as did my hubby and i the cop toold us we could leave. latter we found out the there was a open package of grips found in the baby department wonder if those were the ones thye was looking for.well anyways i was pissed every walmart associate knew us and so did the customers that were in there seeing us took to the back i even told the maniger to stop it while he could and he wouldn't even look me in the eye.So the next day i called walmart corprate head quarters and told them what happened. They investigated and the Lp was fired the maniger was demoted and put in another store.If you are wrongly accused of shop lifting call the head quarters they will listen abd do something if they find you did nothing wrong

If you had a chance to read my 11/18/04 report, I just went to court on 1/4/05 and was found guilty.

The judge acknowledged the fact that Walmart failed to preserve the disposible camera, even though it is an internal Walmart policy to retain any stolen property to use for court.

The judge also acknowledged the fact that the security guard's testimony in court, was different from his own apprehension statement as well as the police report.

He also acknowledged the fact that it was very interesting for the security guard to leave the store 30 seconds before me, walking out the store, when he stated in all his reports that he ran after me to make the stop.

However, I was still found guilty, because I was looking around for the surveillance cameras when I came back into the store, so we can stop and wait for the manager to come. This indicated that I may have had a good idea of where the surveillance cameras are before being stopped by the security, and stole the disposible camera.

First of all, who in his right mind will steal a $4.50 disposible camera where there are more than 3 surveillance cameras around that area? Second, if it is up to the state to provide enough evidence to prove me guilty, they have prsented nothing except for this security guard's testimony. As a judge, how can you believe the security guard's story, when it does not match up with the police report, his own statements, and the sequence of actions on the suvaillance camera of the Walmart exits? ( We were not provided with surveillance camera tapes of the immediate area of the alleged incident)

I am at a loss at this point. We are suppose to have the most develop judicial system in the world. What happened to me indicates otherwise. I would love to see comments on the judge's ruling, especially those who thought he made the right judgement. Maybe I am hallucinating and need to wake up from this dream of living under a free and wonderful nation of ours.

I would love a response from all of you out there

I just happened to come across this site, and all I can say is wow!!! It is great that I am not the only one who has had problems at a Wal-mart.

I use to work as a LP Detective in Houston and decided to go back to the office gig after seeing how CORRUPT the LP system is at most stores, especially Wal-mart.

To the customer who started this forum, all I can say is that sceniero that you said your wife underwent is a common practice among LP Detectives and Investigators.

I started an investigation on an associate that was "SUSPECTED" of stealing and passing out to friends. Well, as you can imagine, some of the retail stores in Texas do not have adaquate equiptment to be able to pick up these "Dishonest Associates" or DA's. After recording all of the data, purchases, and returns that I needed, I handed all of he information over to the District LP Investigator. Well, I was asked to sit in on the meeting between the District LP Investigator, who was a cop before taking this well-paying position. Well, anyways, the questions that he was asking this associate were very questionable on the "forced confession" standpoint, with confusing qustions that would lead to confused answers. At the end, after writing the "Meeting Minutes", since we did not have a tape recorder, I was asked to "RE-WRITE" the Meeting Minutes, because I wrote everything down verbatim.

Well, as you can imagine, after receiving my BS in CJ at Sam Houston State University (One of the most Prestigious colleges for CJ majors), I was a bit troubled with the LP Investigators remarks. "Rose, you are going to have to re-write this, you can not make it look like that I 'made' the associate write down everything on the confession. You have to make it look like he was crying when he came in the room and 'spilled his guts' when he saw me (LPI)". Yeah, I went home and was mad. How can all the classes that I took where you were taught to do the "ETHICAL" thing because everything in this field will come back to "BITE YOU IN THE A**" (Thanks to one of my profs at school!!). Yeah, after this, I quit. I did not want anything to do with that company or with LP all together.

What makes my situation worse is that there was a Wal-mart right next door (walking distance in the shopping center) and I knew the LP Dect there at that location, and he was just as worse, if not more worse than the LPI that was in the "Forced Confession". Right when I began working at the retail store as the LP Detective, I walked into the wal-mart store to pick up contact eye-drops. A relatively small item. I then began to walk around the store to just roam, as many of the wal-mart customers tend to do. Well, I made my way back to the Infant department to look for my God-Son a pair of swimming trunks. I then felt someone staring at me, you know, that uncomfortable feeling you get where your hairs on the back of your neck begin to stand up. And sure enough, there he was, peering through the Boys shirts rack.

I then decided to see how good this LP Detective was compared to the LP Detectives that I worked with, so I sent him on a cat and mouse hunt. I had a pair of pants on, so, I began to take the contact eye-drops in and out of the pockets. I then began to weave in and out of the asiles, before I "Dumped" the merchandise in the shoe department. Where I worked at, there were 5 steps for a sucessful stop. One of them is that you must have "CONSTANT" survailance on the subject, without a seconds delay of sight.

Well, our unsuspecting Wal-mart detective must not have had this training, and lost his survailance. I then paid for the swimming trunks, and several other items, which came to a total of 55$. I then proceeded out of the doors and the EAS towers did not go off. I was then met by the guy who was in the office on the PTZ cameras and he told me that "We need to talk back in my office" I told him, you better be 100% sure that you are going to be making a good stop, and not a NPD (Non-Productive Detainment). He looked at me and grabbed my shirt. I told him that he better have a good lawyer as well as Wal-mart. He then looked at me and said "What the hell are you talking about" I told him if he would like to see the merchandise that I dumped in the shoe department, I would gladly walk over there and show him his mistake. He told me that if I don't go back into the office, that the cops would arrest me. I laughed because, if Mr. Duputy would have known, TX has a minimum of 50$ before arrest, and in some parts, like Houston, Dallas, and San Antonio, they will not arrest unless it is over 100 or more (Because of overcrowding and not enough staff in the departments). The eye-drops were 3.96$. I politely told him that I have a list of cops that I am sure would love to come and visit me here, since I knew almost 2/3rds of the department, where I lived. He said that I did not need to be so smart and to get in the office.

I then called one of my best-friends, who graduated with me from SHSU about 3 years ago, and who also patroled the area to meet me at the Wal-mart to get this overzealous detective out of my face. He came in 2 minutes to see me. He then asked the detective "what's the problem". The detective said "Nothing" in a sulking voice, and then walked back into the office.

I then walked with my friend to my store where we called the detective. Identified myself as the LP detective for the store that I was working at, and told him that if he ever needs anything, or if there are shoplifters that run out and decide to hide in my store, that I will notify him. He said "It's great to have someone as eager as me to the shopping center. I hope that I will be meeting you soon." I then told him that he just did meet me about 3 minutes ago. I then described what I was wearing. There was dead silence. He then told me, well, "Great to meet you" and hung up.

We were laughing about this for about a month afterwards, because my friend had to answer several calls regarding shoplifters from that wal-mart.

Point of the story...LP Detectives do not receive the greatest training. Some of them are old in their ways, and some of them are young stallions that are too hard to tame (Like the one that stopped me). The other point is that you, the consumer, have rights. You do not have to be detained if you know that you do not have any stolen merchandise. The detective does not have the right to touch you or grab your shirt. The bag checker can validate the merchandise in your bag, but if you do not go off in the EAS towers, and you seem to be the only one that he/she stops, then something is seriously wrong. Common curtosey should not be given to the store, but rather to the customer. It's a little thing, that stores like our monopoly friend, Wal-mart, have forgotten....CUSTOMER SERVICE. All the customers should not be treated like criminals when only a small percentage of consumers are shoplifters.

Just a little something to nibble on for your work day...

P.S.

This is not to disrespect all Wal-Marts or Employees of Wal-mart. Like customers, not all Wal-marts are alike. You do have those few that exceed excellence in customer service, and have exceptional LP Detectives. One of them who I dearly respect, BJ, I just wanted to say, that man taught me alot about LP and what to do and not do in the field, especially making false statements to officers, judges, your boss, or anyone for that matter!!! No wonder he (at previous jobs) won LP Det of the month, 7 months consecutively, LP of the Year, and other awards.

Thank for for letting me know who to contact, we went to court today and the guy lied. And the judge judged us guilty and I asked for the tapes to prove he was lying and they refused. They said we would have to pay $1000 and something for an appeal to get a rejudge and I cant afford that. But I am going to try my hardest to take it as far as it can go. There is nothing I hate more than liars and theives and I was lied on and called a theif. And I'm not gonna give up until the security tapes are brought out in the open to prove he was lying.

I was searching the internet in an attempt to locate some information about Loss Prevention Jobs when I came across this post. I have suddenly changed my mind. I was going to look for a lp job to make more money then I currently do as a police officer (8 years) but after reading all the comments, i'm not so sure I would like to anymore. Thanks for clearing it up for me.

The Walmart in my area has door greeters who look at your receipt and nothing else. They wouldn't know if you had a car hidden in your bag!! People are learning that Walmart is a big scam store anymore who mistreats customers and employees. And as for the LP's, most people think of you guys who have an anatomy deficits or minimum wage guys who couldn't be real cops!!

The Walmart in my area has door greeters who look at your receipt and nothing else. They wouldn't know if you had a car hidden in your bag!! People are learning that Walmart is a big scam store anymore who mistreats customers and employees. And as for the LP's, most people think of you guys who have an anatomy deficits or minimum wage guys who couldn't be real cops!!

The Walmart in my area has door greeters who look at your receipt and nothing else. They wouldn't know if you had a car hidden in your bag!! People are learning that Walmart is a big scam store anymore who mistreats customers and employees. And as for the LP's, most people think of you guys who have an anatomy deficits or minimum wage guys who couldn't be real cops!!

Sorry if I have spelled your name wrong, but I think you know who I am talking to. As an ex-LP, I have a few questions to ask you. First of all did they stop you and ask for the receipt before you went out the doors and left walmart or did they stop you inside the store prior to leaving through the exit doors. Walmarts policy is that you can not stop them inside the store you must stop them outside the doors, The reason for this is to make sure they were stealing the items, the other thing is if they do stop you inside the store and try to get you for consealment with in this case would not be possible since the item was in plan view.I know you said that you were on the way to the car, however I am hoping you were still inside the store. Second thing is a Violation of your privacy rights, It is against Walmart Policy to take pictures of any suspect. I would contact the home office and advise them of this, and get an attorney right away. The next thing you can do is go to the magistrates office and request a supeona for the tapes for that day review it and see what you can dispute on the tapes. Hope this was helpful.

Kristi, I do agree with you that people make mistakes and working in Loss Prevention I do see this happen. However, mistake or not you did take unpaid merchandise outside of the store, and in court it will be a lot easier for Wal-Mart to prove you Guilty than it will be for you to prove yourself inocent. When you go to court the judge will not let you show what you have found on Wal-Mart's LP. He only wants to hear what happened this time. The money that Wal-Mart wants from you is a Civil Demand or Civil Restitution, this goes to pay for the camera's and LP wages, it is standard procedure for all SL's. This is also a civil matter and not criminal so if you feel that you dont have to pay it you have to take them to civil court, the judge in the criminal case can not dismiss this and i assume that you signed a piece of paper with this info on it. Again I do agree that people make mistakes and if what you have said is fully true than I think that Wal-Mart did take it far. Unless the amount was over a Felony I dont know why they arrested your husband and let you go, unless he fought with the LP, this doesnt fully make sence. When two people take from the company together they are both just as Guilty and if it is a felony than they will both take a ride to the Jail. When I feel that someone did take something by mistake I will usually take them back and get their info and release them with a Civil Demand. I know that people might put something on or put something in the bottom of their cart and trully forget about it, but you can tell by the way they act upon contact. Take a step back and look at the big picture, whether you ment it or not you did take something out of the store without paying for it and by law you just commited the crime of theft. I dont work for Wal-Mart so I dont know their policy on prosecution, it varys from store to store.

My husband and I was accussed of stealing from Wal-Mart. And he was taken to jail, this is what happen, We went to buy some things we needed and we had a cart full and had a larger item under our cart and we went to the checkout desk to pay for our stuff and forgot about the item under the cart and on our way to the car we were stopped by the manager and a security guy, they asked to see our receipt and we gave it to them wondering what was going on, and he told us we did not pay for the item on the bottom of our cart and we told him we were sorry that we had totally forgot about it and we would be more than happy to pay for it as we intended. He said No you wont, come on in, we followed him into his office and he made us sign all sorts of papers and called the police, during the time we were asking him questions trying to figure out what was going on and he wouldn't answer us at all he just sit there with his mouth shut. He took our pictures and told us we were never to come back to Wal-Mart. When the police got there they aressted my husband, and let me go so I could bail him out the officer found it observe that they had taken it this far. We forgot about it the cashier didnt notice it, it was a complete mistake. Now we are going to court with a jury trial and Wal-Mart LP keeps sending us letters saying we owe them money. And we are soon to go to court with them. Yes, I can understand that if a person steals they need to take their punishment and pay, its not like we consealed something or tried to steal anything. Everyone makes mistakes and forgets something once in awhile, especially when you got a 6 month old baby crying, so you are trying to hurry and get out and calm your child. This is a bunch of crap that they are accussing us of "stealing". I am looking forward to going to court and bringing all the dirt I have found on Wal-Mart and their Loss Prevention bullshit.

My husband and I was accussed of stealing from Wal-Mart. And he was taken to jail, this is what happen, We went to buy some things we needed and we had a cart full and had a larger item under our cart and we went to the checkout desk to pay for our stuff and forgot about the item under the cart and on our way to the car we were stopped by the manager and a security guy, they asked to see our receipt and we gave it to them wondering what was going on, and he told us we did not pay for the item on the bottom of our cart and we told him we were sorry that we had totally forgot about it and we would be more than happy to pay for it as we intended. He said No you wont, come on in, we followed him into his office and he made us sign all sorts of papers and called the police, during the time we were asking him questions trying to figure out what was going on and he wouldn't answer us at all he just sit there with his mouth shut. He took our pictures and told us we were never to come back to Wal-Mart. When the police got there they aressted my husband, and let me go so I could bail him out the officer found it observe that they had taken it this far. We forgot about it the cashier didnt notice it, it was a complete mistake. Now we are going to court with a jury trial and Wal-Mart LP keeps sending us letters saying we owe them money. And we are soon to go to court with them. Yes, I can understand that if a person steals they need to take their punishment and pay, its not like we consealed something or tried to steal anything. Everyone makes mistakes and forgets something once in awhile, especially when you got a 6 month old baby crying, so you are trying to hurry and get out and calm your child. This is a bunch of crap that they are accussing us of "stealing". I am looking forward to going to court and bringing all the dirt I have found on Wal-Mart and their Loss Prevention bullshit.

My husband and I was accussed of stealing from Wal-Mart. And he was taken to jail, this is what happen, We went to buy some things we needed and we had a cart full and had a larger item under our cart and we went to the checkout desk to pay for our stuff and forgot about the item under the cart and on our way to the car we were stopped by the manager and a security guy, they asked to see our receipt and we gave it to them wondering what was going on, and he told us we did not pay for the item on the bottom of our cart and we told him we were sorry that we had totally forgot about it and we would be more than happy to pay for it as we intended. He said No you wont, come on in, we followed him into his office and he made us sign all sorts of papers and called the police, during the time we were asking him questions trying to figure out what was going on and he wouldn't answer us at all he just sit there with his mouth shut. He took our pictures and told us we were never to come back to Wal-Mart. When the police got there they aressted my husband, and let me go so I could bail him out the officer found it observe that they had taken it this far. We forgot about it the cashier didnt notice it, it was a complete mistake. Now we are going to court with a jury trial and Wal-Mart LP keeps sending us letters saying we owe them money. And we are soon to go to court with them. Yes, I can understand that if a person steals they need to take their punishment and pay, its not like we consealed something or tried to steal anything. Everyone makes mistakes and forgets something once in awhile, especially when you got a 6 month old baby crying, so you are trying to hurry and get out and calm your child. This is a bunch of crap that they are accussing us of "stealing". I am looking forward to going to court and bringing all the dirt I have found on Wal-Mart and their Loss Prevention bullshit.

My husband and I was accussed of stealing from Wal-Mart. And he was taken to jail, this is what happen, We went to buy some things we needed and we had a cart full and had a larger item under our cart and we went to the checkout desk to pay for our stuff and forgot about the item under the cart and on our way to the car we were stopped by the manager and a security guy, they asked to see our receipt and we gave it to them wondering what was going on, and he told us we did not pay for the item on the bottom of our cart and we told him we were sorry that we had totally forgot about it and we would be more than happy to pay for it as we intended. He said No you wont, come on in, we followed him into his office and he made us sign all sorts of papers and called the police, during the time we were asking him questions trying to figure out what was going on and he wouldn't answer us at all he just sit there with his mouth shut. He took our pictures and told us we were never to come back to Wal-Mart. When the police got there they aressted my husband, and let me go so I could bail him out the officer found it observe that they had taken it this far. We forgot about it the cashier didnt notice it, it was a complete mistake. Now we are going to court with a jury trial and Wal-Mart LP keeps sending us letters saying we owe them money. And we are soon to go to court with them. Yes, I can understand that if a person steals they need to take their punishment and pay, its not like we consealed something or tried to steal anything. Everyone makes mistakes and forgets something once in awhile, especially when you got a 6 month old baby crying, so you are trying to hurry and get out and calm your child. This is a bunch of crap that they are accussing us of "stealing". I am looking forward to going to court and bringing all the dirt I have found on Wal-Mart and their Loss Prevention bullshit.

Dear Nick in Kentucky,

I think you better go back and check your regs and I will be more then happy to send your last response to the home office. First of all if you stop a person outside the doors(last point of purchase)they had better have something on them other wise according to Walmart regulations you have just made a bad stop. It does not matter if you turn them loose, If you stop to question them and they do not have anything you are in the wrong. You have to have all three of your elements before you can stop them. If you are such a good LP then you should have know that and your last response would not have read "If I cannot recover, I let them go." This could mean a termination for you and you know that as well, so either you are blowing things up to make yourself look better your you are just plain an idiot for putting this information out to the world where we can not send this to the home office. Please let me know who your District LP is so we can forward this to them as well.

Ukiah, I admit, I made a big mistake. Yes I can admit when I make mistakes. Im sorry, I thought you were calling me a b*****d and I was totally wrong. I really do appologize. I am NOT being sarcastic either.
Hey I admit that you are right on something else too. We should teach our employees to effectively de activate things that would cause our allarm to go off. I totally agree, but that's not the point. The fact of the matter is, the alarm went off for some reason and the door greeters are required to find out why. Every time that alarm goes off, we DO NOT think you are a thief. Sometimes, yeah we assume that because if the alarm goes off and someone has nothing in their hand, no bag, etc, its not a coincidence. Anyhow, I know it is an inconvenience when that happens, but come on, how long does it really take to let the greeter know everything is legit? It doesn't takemore than 10 seconds. Im sure your time is VERY valuable, but nobody is trying to single you out or make you look dumb, or draw attention to you. It's just theor job. A lot of times, it's NOT a malfunction, just that someone didn't de activate the merchandise, that's all.
Yeah Yeah I know about the amendments and privacy stuff, trust me I had to memorize the first 5 amendments last semester for a class, but still, nobody is trying to pry into your life. Honestly we aren't. That alarm goes off hundreds of times a day, to honest people and dishonest people. It's really just a deterrent (that doesn't help deter a whole lot). My point is, if everything is legit, and the greeter sees that everything is ok, they and all the other people that look at you will realize it was a mistake. I guess some people just want to look good in front of others. I guess it could be embarrasing, but if people pay for everything, it's not really a big deal.
About the hauling innocent ones into the back room, I am lucky to say I haven't hauled any innocent people into the back room. Actually I recover the merchandise before we go back into the store, and If I cannot recover, I let them go. Believe it or not, I know when they are lying to me too. If I truly know someone stole, and they wont give it back, then I will take them into the back room. It is rare that I take someone back in without recovering first though. I have heard horror stories about bad stops and bad apprehensions when people have made mistakes, thats why I am always 100% sure when I stop someone.
About Coleman, Yeah I'll trade, I hate that guy. All he does is bring up trouble, but thats another story for another time. Yeah Our police department is not doing so hot, I know. And I have been thinking hard about joining, only to be one of the good guys of course. Anyways, the fallen officers from 9-11 and the firefighters have my total respect. I never said I didn't respect them and that has nothing to do with crooked cops. I think we both got off the subject on that issue. But Just because opportunities were not there for the Louisville Metro Police Department to come help at 9-11, that doesn't mean they are not as important as your officers. If the towers were in Louisville we would have lost just as many, so it's not a matter of respect, its a matter of being at the wrong place at the wrong time.
I am also glad that they know your name at our home office, but honestly I don't care, but Im glad that it made you laugh. I am happy for you that it is something for yout o brag about.
It is totally rediculous to search everyones bag at the stores, I know that and so do you, and Im not saying thats what I want. I just don't think its a big deal for a door greeter to check someones stuff when the alarm goes off, because of any reason. No matter who is at fault, it's just not that big of a deal. Get over it, everything will be okay. I promise.
Ukiah, you are right, both of us are totally supportive of the law and justice. If I had your job I would say the same things as you, and if you had my job you would feel the same way I do. I want to propose that we "agree to disagree" and maybe we can be more civil about the whole thing.
thanks for the support. AND YES WE DO HAVE ONE HELL OF A BASKETBALL COACH. GO CARDS!

Hello Nick, Ukiah, and Hopefully Josh,

I am glad that I found this website. I am hoping all of you can help me with my situation.

I was shopping at Walmart 2 months ago. I rode my motorcycle that day, and therefore had my backpack on. Not finding anything that I needed, I decided to leave the store. The security guard met me out front and asked me to go back into the store. Sensing that I was under suspicion for shoplifting, I offered for him to search my bag and me. He refused to do so, grabbed on to my shirt, and asked me to go back into the store. By the time we got to the main aisle with 3+ surveillance cameras, I stopped and asked to speak with a manager for the cause of this. He would not comply, grabbed onto my shirt forcefully, and told me to go to the back office. Sensing that he had no reason to do so, and I was better off under the watchful eyes of witnesses and surveillance cameras, I demanded to speak to a manager before agreeing to his request. While waiting for the manager, I noticed his hand holding onto both my bag and a disposable camera, same model as the cameras on the display close to us. We (along with another Walmart employee) waited for over 10 minutes before the manager finally appeared. He stated that he watched me during my stay in the store and suspected that I was shoplifting. According to him, while taking me back into the store, he spotted me dropping a disposable camera near the display. At this point, it was my words against his. I asked the 3 of them to either release me or call the police. The police showed up 10 minutes later, and all of us walked to the back office. One of the police officer followed the manager to the video room to review the tape, and decided to arrest and charge me with shoplifting. I was searched, handcuffed, and walked out of the store. Despite numerous requests to bag the camera as evidence, it was denied.

Since then, my lawyer has requested for any surveillance videos relevant to the case. Walmart sent us videos on 2 separate occasions that were not viewable in a normal VCR. On the third time, the tape provided images that totally contradicts what the security guard stated on the police report and the Walmart's statement. Also, they have indicated to my lawyer that the disposable camera in question has already been circulated back onto the store floor and may have been sold already. This disposable camera is the single piece of irrefutable evidence that can be tested for my fingerprints and determine whether I have committed the crime alleged by Walmart.

So, Nick and Josh, I know you guy are in the LP department and you guys can be a big help.
1) Is there a nationwide policy that you guys have to follow?

2) If I volunteered for a search outside the store, do you guys have to search me there under Walmart policies, or is it normal to force someone to go to the back office with you before you search?

3) Is it a normal policy not to keep the stolen property for evidence? Especially if it is the single irrefutable evidence to prove my innocence?

Ukiah, it seems that you are a paralegal or a lawyer, although you have not came out and stated so. I am pretty confident that the court system will be fair and find that I am indeed innocent. Although my lawyer is telling me that anything can happen. But once this criminal phase is over, and the court does judge in my favor, any idea if you or your collegues will be interested in representing me for a civil suit on a contingency basis in NJ?

And to all of you, It is clear that loss prevention plays a key role in a company's bottom line. Not only do they prevent losses for a company, their work also keep the prices low for customers. I fully respect what they do and that was why I cooperated, up to a point. However, in the event that took place in September has gone beyond what I think is normally considered as acceptable and violated a person's rights. Honestly, I don't care if I do not make out with a penny after all this. I just want to make my case heard, and change some of the policies that Walmart and our legal system has in place. After all, withholding evidence that can prove a person's innocence is not right. And being able to convict someone simply by a testimony of a security person simply erases all the technological advances that mankind has created to prove one thing, the truth.

Thank you for taking your time out to read this. I hope I will be able to hear from all of you soon, as well as anyone else who would like to contribute.

I was at Wal Mart yesterday getting my baby's portrait taken. My friend stayed with her at the studio while I went to the electronics department to purchase some DVD;s. Anyways I was purchasing them with cash and my cell rang that my daughter was having a fit at the studio. So I asked the clerk is that it? She said yes si I sprinted to the studio leaving my receipt N change behind. Problem? I did not bother to wait for change because I wasnt suppose to get any back. However the clerk made a mistake and only charged one! So she had my receipt n change.

She didnt call out to me or anything so i get the portraits done, eat at Mc donalds and 1hr 1/2 later in leaving. Well obviously the alarm went off so we look for the bag n hand it to the associate. She starts yelling and accusing me cause there is no receipt...I was like what, well let me go back to the electronics dept. Lo and behold there is my receipt and change. But only one dvd i was mad but i didnt go after the clerk just went back to the exit to explain. The lady flipped out and started yelling code 75 and God only knows what else. I had the exact change for the item but she wouldnt listen. I explained it 7 times and still shes yelling code 75. Finally another associate allowed me to pay on the first register.

The girls were changing shifts so she told me wait unless you want to pay with a cc or debit. I said fine so I paid with my debit and on my way out the associate took my receipt wrote down all the information on it and another one watched me as I drove off. What the heck was that about? Are they trying to accuse me of theft? Can they do that even though they let me pay and go and NO ONE no LP;s or Cops or Mgmt spoke to me? I am innocent and the clerk made a mistake which I had no problem correcting. I went somewhere else to food shop today and I checked all the items I bought, I dont want to go to walmart again and I loved shopping there (i shopped there every few days since its the holiday season)my family thinks im being paranoid but that lady scared me. Have I done something wrong? can they try to come after me?

"Ukiah, I never called anyone a name. But since you want to be like that, Im not going to call anyone, or many people, a B****."
Nor did I. The name calling came from Adam. I, in fact stated that I would NOT resort to that level. Got it now?

"Yes I an alumni of the University of Louisville and a proud one at that." Well, you do have one hell of a basketball coach - I'll give you that one.

"You know what, you are right, you dont have to stop when the EAS alarm goes off at the door, but you probably should out of respect."
OK, I don't disagree. I'm all for respect, but respect for whom exactly? It's not MY system that's malfunctioning. How about THEY respect my time, my inconvenience, my privacy and either fix the d**n system or teach their employees how to use it properly?

"I honestly dont know who you think you are by putting yourself "above everything and everyone else." You actually make me mad because you think you know everything and you don't have to do anything you don't want to. It's people like you that make peoples jobs hard."
Nick, who "I am" is an American who is protected by the 4th Amendment. That keeps your prying eyes out of my bags and my life, unless I decide differently. Yes, it really is that straightforward.

"Another thing, I think it would be funny for a thief to call 911 after they are detained because they stole something."
Nick, you misunderstand. No thief is going to call 911. I'm advising the innocent ones to do so. You know, the ones you mistakenly haul into the back room? Yeah, I know about them as well - they make up a large part of our clients.

"I don't know about the crooked cops in your city, but the police are on our side because we try to help get rid of thieves."
Oh, please - Louisville has just convicted one of its own LEOs for drunk driving and killing another driver (knocked her through the intersection), and you guys have the market cornered on police shootings of minorities. Does the Reverend Coleman ring a bell? He's your version of our Al Sharpton. Wanna trade?

"You know an awful lot about the Wal Mart system."
I do indeed. It keeps sending me business. But in all fairness to you, so does Target, etc.

"Oh yeah, the only reason the managers were apologetic to you is because they didn't want you to call home office."
Too late. Did that before I went back to the store. In fact, Mr Napier boasted that "They know my name in Bentonville". I actually laughed out loud, in front of his manager, and replied "well, they certainly do now, I can assure you of that!"

"And if nobody chases down thieves from that store they must not care about their company assets."
And that's precisely my point. You view anyone and everyone who sets off the alarm, refuses to be searched, refuses to show a receipt, etc., as a "thief" These are YOUR words. And therein is exactly the problem. Guilty until proven innocent.

And if you feel that I'm making a big deal out of this, and that the Constitution really doesn't apply, let's go here. Let's search EVERYONE that exits the store then. I will bet my next paycheck against yours that we WILL find something wrong. Mission accomplished. And by the same token, if we then search every residence in Louisville and Jefferson County, I further guarantee that we WILL find illegal activities, fugitives from justice, any number of things. And we'll start with YOUR neighborhood, your street. How's that Nick? Now obviously, the ends do not justify the means, and the Constitution prohibits it anyway. But, yes on a smaller scale, that's precisely what is happening at many stores today.

Frankly, I doubt that our views on law and order are very far apart at all, it's just a matter of the methods used to carry out what is certainly a legitimate concern on your part - loss prevention. So, you have my full and total support for prosecuting the thieves. Hell, I'll even help you chase them down. But you have to leave the innocent customers alone in the process. Tough job, I understand that. I don't envy you one bit, and I appreciate what you are faced with daily. Best wishes Nick.

By the way, regarding your characterization of my "crooked cops", the NYPD lost 23 officers on 9/11, Port Authority lost 37. How many did the Louisville PD lose? Next time you want to discuss "respect", let's begin here.

Ukiah, I never called anyone a name. But since you want to be like that, Im not going to call anyone, or many people, a B****. See I am really not from Richmond, I am from Louisville and I do attent the University of Louisville. I just didnt want to tell everyone that because I was fearful what many of you psychos may try to do to me. Anyhow, Yes I an alumni of the University of Louisville and a proud one at that. I know all about Eastern Kentucky University and the area and you are right, there is nothing to do there.
I wanted to say that I never claimed to check receipts or bags or any of that other door greeter crap. I just catch shoplifters. And you are right, as I said before, about shrink....NOT THEFT. Not in my store anyways. Im not realy sure of you know things we deal with. Yea Yea I work for Wal Mart and you probably have put money in my pocket many times and I appreciate it a lot. You know what, you are right, you dont have to stop when the EAS alarm goes off at the door, but you probably should out of respect. The greeters are just doing their job by asking you to come back. They do this to log these instances in their little book so maybe we can see if the de activators are broke, or so we can pull up transactions to see if things arent getting scanned and things like that. I honestly dont know who you think you are by putting yourself "above everything and everyone else." You actually make me mad because you think you know everything and you don't have to do anything you don't want to. It's people like you that make peoples jobs hard. I haven't met a lot of people from New York, but the ones I have met are rude. And let's say the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. Another thing, I think it would be funny for a thief to call 911 after they are detained because they stole something. I don't know about the crooked cops in your city, but the police are on our side because we try to help get rid of thieves. In fact, just for you, I will tell the next thief I catch to call 911 because I cannot hold them there. It will just make the police get there faster so I can get my work done. I will probably call 911 for them. Thanks for the idea. I love catching people with attitudes like yours, I think it is funny. What was it that you do for a living again? Maybe you are a professional thief. You know an awful lot about the Wal Mart system. Oh yeah, the only reason the managers were apologetic to you is because they didn't want you to call home office. Im sure they walked away thinking you were a huge thief anyways. Who cares about Macy's anyways. We aren't talking about that company. And if nobody chases down thieves from that store they must not care about their company assets. Anyway, I cannot wait to hear from you again. I am looking forward to your words of wisdom. BYE!!!

I'm not going to call anyone a "b*****d", Nick included. There's no reason to resort to that kind of thing. However, I definitely will go on record as stating that his statements are built on half-truths, and as I stated prior, bluffs commonly found in retail. He wants to speak of stealing? OK, then here are the facts:

1. Loss is caused on an almost 80/20 ratio by employees. That's right. For every independent shoplifter, there are FOUR incidents involving employees in some form or fashion.

2. The "right to inspect your bags" is nonexistent, yes even in Richmond KY.

3. The "must show a receipt" is nonexistent. Courts have consistently ruled in favor of the customer on both this and the bag inspection issue.

4. You may certainly be detained by LP personnel. But only for a short period of time. You may demand to be charged or be released, and furthermore there is NOTHING to prevent you from dialing 911 yourself. In fact, I strongly suggest it. Otherwise (in Nick's state anyway - KY) it's called unlawful detention.

5. "You set the buzzer off upon exiting, you must return to the store". Utter BS. Happens all the time to me due to some equipment I carry, and I simply say "sorry about that, not my problem" and keep walking. Major players such as Macy's know their policy is a bluff - I've yet to see anyone chased down 5th Avenue by the redcoats from Macy's. Others, such as Burlington Coat Factory, get "reminded" from time to time. Check the legals in the NY Times.....

As far as what I know about retail, law, and the Commonwealth of Kentucky, Nick your best reference there might be a gentleman by the name of Scott Napier. It has been some years since I consulted on a complaint against the Walmart at the corner of Richmond Road and Man-O-War there in Lexington. However, Mr Napier (an assistant manager at the time) was most apologetic, as was his immediate management chain, when confronted with the evidence.

One other thing I know about that particular part of Kentucky is that the University to which Nick refers is Eastern Kentucky University. Definitely a lower tier school, and certainly not on par with the University of Kentucky, University of Louisville, Transy or even Centre College. So, while I certainly advocate furthering one's education, this isn't exactly like graduating from a "name" school. Yes, they do have a large number of law enforcement graduates, but I think we can attribute that to the cheap tuition, and the fact that they are the only game in town for LEO training. "Only game in town" - wow! Just like Walmart.

Oh' man where to begin. On many occasions, I have ben held up at the exit of wal-mart stores by so called greeters, sometimes an item hasn't had it's anti-theft protection removed or de- magnatized. Other times they have demanded my receipt so they can inventory every item in my cart and match it against my reciept obtained by paying for each and every item seconds before.

I have been folowed ( and not inconspiculously) by loss prevention on numerous occasions.I wonder how much undicovered theft went on during the time they wasted on me? Bottom line,Each and every incident (Saint Petersburg FL, Denver CO, Missoula MT and Anchorage AK) caused my wife and me undue delay and public embarassment. Loss Prevention personnel often think they need to exercise thier perceived power to make up for thier own sadistic or self esteem issues. By the way, every I have been detained by a Wal-Mart employee, It has been employee error. Go figure. And for Ukiah Right on Don't Let the Bastards Get Away With It Anywhere YOU Find Them.

I am also a former employee of Wal Mart. I was never fired, but quit. Back in 1993, I was a seasonal employee. I fell off of a ladder about 11 feet or so onto a concrete floor at the store in Greensboro, NC, where I worked. I only missed one day of work, however, never fully recovered. The Dr. they sent me to, insulted my integrity by accusing me of not wanting to go back to work since I insisted that something was still wrong with my neck and back. She had no idea that I was already back at work, she was merely trying to intimidate me or lump me into some category of those looking to get something for nothing.

The worker compensation "professional" handling Wal Mart's business treated me much like the doctor. I eventually just quit working there and moved on with my life.

In 1998, I had surgery on my neck, in 1999, I had surgery on my neck, in 2000, I had surgery on my neck. All on my dime. I have degerative discs in my lower and mid back. I am miserable every day, however, I work every day. WalMart literally badgered me into leaving them alone and my life is ruined as a result of faulty equipment and being treated like a no one to them.

I tell you this story to encourage all who have dealings with Wal Mart to beware. If you are hurt on the job, consider your termination wrongful, or are coerced by them in any way - get LEGAL ASSISTANCE immediately. They seem to fear nothing as they walk thin lines of human resource faux pas on a daily basis.

Sadly, I enjoyed working there. They went from treating me as an asset to a liability in about 2 minutes.

I was held at a Ames store for 3 hours and told that I changed a price on an item.My children was with me, they stopped me at the door and told me to go up stairs with them.I went and they tried to get me admit that I changed the price on an item.

They told me in front of my children, which was crying that I was going to jail.

I asked them to prove to me that I changed the price and they could not. The price on the box was the orginal one, the cashier rang it up wrong.

Yes, I knew it was the wrong price, I should have told her,

First of all, I am not a rent a cop, nor do I think that i am a police officer or anything like that, and I never claimed to be. The first thing that I want to address is the fact that shoplifters that I catch will, indeed, pay. I never claimed that I would make them pay, but I will make sure that they are cited for the shoplifting/robbery charge, (If need be). Never once did I claim that I would personally make sure that shoplifters and thieves pay for what they did. I go to court on shoplifters all the time, I know that I have no judicial power.

However, by being a witness, and by the position that I have with my job, I do have some influence on the system/police officers/judges/attorneys. I never claimed that it was my job to make them pay. I know good and well that my job is to catch shoplifters, internal theft and external theft. But what you fail to realize is that I have discretional power to release any shoplifter that I want. I could catch people all day and let each and everyone go. So actually I do have some sort of say to who gets charged and who doesn't.

So I kind of resent the cop wanna be from wally world comment. If you must know I am graduating with a criminal justice degree from a very highly respected college, and I am pursuing a masters in criminal justice after I graduate in December. What kind of job do you have again? Oh, you never came out and told us. There is one thing that you are right about, but not totally right- I know shrinkage comes mainly from employees, but theft doesn't. I never once talked about shrinkage and how much comes from customers/employees. That was not my topic of discussion.
"We reserve the right to inspect all packages".--who the hell said that? I never said that anyways so where did that come from? That statement has no relevance to my rebuttal. And nobody said you must show a receipt. I work at WalMart for goodness sakes. I know you do not have to show a receipt. You just think you know so much about the system and so much about the company but you really are uneducated about both. And if you were the least bit intelligent, you would know that different rules/regulations/laws differ from each jurisdiction. And you have to think about this. Say a person purchases some things, but not others, but they still bag the stuff up, or under-ring themselves at a U-scan, the merchandise is not lawfully theirs even if a transaction is made. Just because a transaction is made, does not always mean it is a legitimate one. Let's say bad checks for example. If a person fraudulently and intentionally writes a bad check knowing that there is no money in the bank or no such account with intentions to permanently deprive an owner, that is theft by deception, or larceny, however you want to view the situation.
And what the hell are you talking about with the concealed weapons thing. Who talked about taking away weapons and arresting people who bring weapons on the property? Not me. I think you should have read my comments more carefully before you responded to things that you do not have so much information about. So if you are worried about me bluffing anyone, you can stop because I do not bluff shoplifters. And nobody is going to call my bluff so I am not worried about that either. I do not know how you do things in the Big Apple, but do us all a favor, stay there, and leave us alone. So keep shopping and/or stealing to keep me in business. Thanks.

nick states:

"I just do my job and if I catch someone stealing from me they will pay."

Except that what he fails to understand is that it's NOT his job to make you pay. Only the judicial system can make you do anything. Criminal penalties, civil penalties, whatever, are solely in the realm of the legal system, not some cop-wannabe from Wally World.

And here's a few other things Nick failed to tell you:

1. Shrinkage (theft) is over 80% due to employees, NOT customers. Why are you not PUBLICLY checking them, Nick?

2. "We reserve the right to inspect all packages". Utter bullshit and a pure bluff. That "right" doesn't exist unless they are willing to formally charge you with a crime (BIG mistake in most cases involving customers).

3. "You must show your receipt". Unless you are at a club (Sam's, CostCo) where this is a requirement of membership, this is also a bluff. The courts continually rule that once a financial transaction has taken place on the premises of the seller, title and ownership IMMEDIATELY transfer to the purchaser and the seller loses all rights to the merchandise in consideration for payment received. What will generally happen here is that the store "greeter" and/or LP person will get charged with unlawful detention if they try to push it, or even simple assault if they physically restrain an innocent person.

4. Other "rules". Ironic that Nick is from KY. Since the Commonwealth of KY passed a concealed carry law some years back, many stores (including WalMart) have taken a "no concealed weapons" stance. And that's certainly their right to do so. However, what these LPs and rent-a-cops don't understand, is that the ONLY recourse they have is to ask the person to leave their premises. If the person refuses, then they can be charged with trespassing, but that's all. The LPs cannot confiscate the weapon, arrest the person, etc., though someone at a WalMart in KY (maybe Nick?) tried to do just that. The result was that the person can now afford any gun he would like to carry, thanks to the store security.

Nick, if it were my assets, I would certainly do all I could to protect them as well. However, I would also put my energies where they would do the most good, and I would not try bluffing the people that pay my salary. Because eventually you are going to have your bluff called by someone who knows what they are doing, and it is you that will "pay".

i do not know where to begin. I work in LP for Wal Mart, and let's face it-stealing =stealing =stealing. If you let friends use your discount card, you are helping the store lose money. Not to mention it is against the rules, and it is dishonest, and you cannot tell me she didn't know she wasn't supposed to do it. Ill be honest, I think your wife is a liar and she did this for many friends on many occasions. But even if it was one occasion it is still WRONG.

Anyways, I can guarantee that when I catch someone, I will detain them until the police get there. I have had to wait several hours for police to arrive. And I do use force. I use whatever force is necessary to apprehend and recover merchandise. No police officer will get mad or the book will not be thrown at me for catching and holding a criminal. What would be the thief's case: " I am a thief, but I got mad because I got caught and now I am gonna sue you." Yeah right, these lowlife thiefs suck because they raise prices for us all and take away from my bonus check at the end of the year. Not based on my apprehensions, but on our profit.

People are crazy, and im sorry she doesnt owe 400/month for two years UNLESS-she stole or helped steal a lot more than two times. Sounds fishy to me.

I dont know what else to say. A lot of people do not respect LP's. Sure some LP think they are police, but others just try to catch thieves. I just do my job and if I catch someone stealing from me they will pay. It is a hard job and people dont understand that. Not to mention some people are just too dumb to realize they will get caught. IM OUT

Believe it or not, both she and I along with other family members have already been shopping there. There is nothing else in our rural community. No one has said anything. I spoke with the Loss Prevention officer who filed the charges yesterday afternoon. He told me that she could receive some time but more than likely not since it was her first offense. Of course it is actually up to the DA. He also said that Bethany is a good girl and a hard worker who got between a rock and a hard place. He said that he would call the Attorney's office to see why there is a difference in the amounts. We will have to wait and see if he is truthful or lying. I also called the Loss Prevention at the Home Office and they say that after her payment she only owes around 169.00. I will keep you guys informed and thanks for your advice.

In ,ten years in Loss Prevention,I have seen this happen before. They thought that she chose not to abide by the binding agreement so they file theft charges agaist her. Now that they have found the payment, the judge will most likey to dismiss the charge against your daughter. In the future, send your payment by registered mail, and get a return receipt for it.I hope this is of some help too you.

I am sorry to hear that your daughter has done this, and I will try to explain what is going on, Walmart is trying to get her twice. She signed the papers and you need to get a look at the papers first of all to see what she really agreed to. Second of all the reason the officer came to give you a summons is Civil litigation. They are attempting to get her twice which is legal in most states. They are going after her on the criminal side for the theft, now that she has admitted to it they are comming after her on the civil side. You need an attorney for your daughter. The 335 dollars my guess is for attorneys fees and court costs added onto the 203 she has stated she took. In most cases Walmart says they are doing you a favor by not prosecuting you on the criminal charge so they then come after her on the civil side even if she is willing to pay restitution. One of the papers she signed (my money says) is a form where they are banning her from the store, on this paper it states that even though they are not prosecuting her they have the right to come after her on the civil side. The bad news is by signing this paper she is agreeing to it. I know I use to be loss prevention. What I dont understand is why people do not stand up to Walmart. It is easier then you think, yes it takes alot of patient because they can really drag this out. The other thing is ask for the tape, they have to have one. You will need to go through the court system for it but you can get it. This has to clearly show your daughter taking the money. Not just because her draw is short, that is usually the first indication and then the loss pervention speaks with the csm who knows which registers have cameras. Call there bluff and make them prove every word they say. Hope I was helpful

My daughter who worked for a year and a half at our local Walmart was recently fired for apparently taking cash from her register. Do I believe this? Yes, I think she probally did this. Why do I say this about my daughter? Because she had just moved out on her own for the first time and she was having major financial problems. I do believe that it was possible for her to take a few dollars here and there but I also believe that it was wrong and she should take her punishment. However, she too was threatened with being arrested before she could get to her car if she left without signing papers agreeing to all that they had accused her of. So she signed.

She also agreed to pay 26 dollars each month until the total amount of $203 was paid. So she sends in her first payment and they loose it. Now via email they tell her that they had placed it in the wrong account and have rectified the matter and that she can continue paying payments but to be sure to put her account number on the money order.

Still, last night, an officer came to her home and summons her to court saying that she owes Walmart $335.

Why are they taking her to court after making arrangments to pay and why did the amount increase? This is where I find fault with Walmart. Did they conveniantly loose her payment so that they could file charges?

And will they drop the charges now that they have found it? I am going to call Loss Prevention as soon as I get off here. I will soon find out.

yes to detain requires evidence of theft, so lets see you go in a store select, conceal then exit.. LP will detain and refer to prosecute. Second, you work at a store you still cash, or pass off merchandise. LP has cameras (time lapse) to go back and review the transaction, LP has XBR reporting systems ( paper trails are always left) and other methods of detecting internal theft.Therefore if that evidence is present you will get detained and prosecuted and FIRED. So where the hell you come off reciting to me . I am a Police Academy Graduate, Bach. in Criminal Justicei know what not to do to infringe on Civil Rights. Thank you.

You may detain shoplifters for a set period of time, according to your state code. BUT,if it's not "caught in the act" theft, and it's something that's happened earlier or days previous, you are violating their civil rights by arresting them.

The US Supreme Court has opinionated;

The Definitions of an Arrest-
Pysically detained
Told they cannot leave
Believed they could not leave
Believed they were under arrest

And by the way,
If you do an accidental civil rights violating arrest, you needed to Mirandize them before questioning began!

STILL DUSTIN CLEARLY NEEDS TO GET WEENED FROM THE BREAST MILK. I will not result to cursing like a child (Dustin). But again if you got fired , you must have screwed something up. Hey "Dusty Butt" You got a job? I DO and been there in "LP" for 10 years... I guess I am doing something right. So DUST off your butt, and pull your sob story up by the boot straps, get in the unemployment line and find another job, so they to can fire you DUSTY BUTT.

FIRST OF ALL WHO THE F*** DO YOU THINK YOU ARE TELLING US TO TAKE RESPONSIBILITY LET ME TELL YOU SOMETING I DO TAKE IT FOR SOMETHING I AM GUILTY OF BUT ILL BE DARNED IF I TAKE IT FOR THE B.S WAL MART TRIES TO PULL ON THEIR EMPLOYEES AND AS FAR AS YOU, YOU CAN KISS - WELL NEVER MIND, WOULDNT WANT DIRT ON ME

People keep saying that "oh, I was let go because of this or that".Blaming their firing on "Loss Prevention" or "BS". What you people dont realize is that Loss Prevention and Human Resource work hand in hand. There are strict guidelines in EVERY company to follow when letting someone go for this type (all tpyes in fact)of violations. If the "guidelines" are not followed to the "T" there is possible lawsuits to be conducted. I am getting tired of the "sob" stories, If you got fired for it Loss Prevention and Human Resource had enough "evidence" to let you go. I have been in Loss Prevention for ten years and the "let's blame LP or HR, for my firing is old and "BS"".
Take responsibilty, you either comitted the violation or you really stunk at you job.

I ALSO WAS TERMINATED FROM WAL MART AND ACCUSED OF SAME STUFF THAT I WAS ALLOWING A FRIEND TO CARRY STUFF OUT OF THE STORE WITH OUT PAYING FOR STUFF WHICH WAS A BUNCH OF BS . THEY FIRED ME BECAUSE I WAS GOOD AT MY JOB AND THEY HAD FRIENDS THEY WANTED IN MY POSITION WAS ALL IT WAS

She was instructed when she was given the card it was for her and family NOT friends.
"After about six months of employment, she allowed two friends to make two separate purchases on her card (Two recently EX-Coworkers also)."
You've already admitted guilt!
She needs to take some personal responsibility for her actions !

"They confronted her with the purchase made by her friend and claimed that she allowed her to walk out of the store without paying for the product." Hmm let's see she admits that the purchase(sure)was made by her friend.

Just by coincidence security catches her allowing someone to leave without paying for the product...a friend. So security knows who her friends are or is it a conspiracy?

"We have since stopped paying for the BS loss pevention payments that she is supposed to be making over a span of years at $400.00 a month."
I doubt your comments about $400 a month "over a span of years". In 2 years that would be $9600. In order to recover the fraudulent discounts that would be $96,000 in purchases that Walmart is accusing you of. And it's a 10% discount not 5%.


"After she appeared in court and since she has never had so much as a speeding ticket she was given 12 days home incarceration." What happened in court? Was she told to pay an amount to Walmart.

"One: Every six months to a year someone at this same store is charged with a similar charge and when I sought them out and told them of her story and the accounts of their stories compare almost exactly to my wife's." Sounds reasonable that a large company would have an employee trying to rip them off every six months or even less.
"Two: All of these incidents of employees in these situations coincide "WalMart Stores profit loss due to theft report" WHAT does that mean?

"When we confront a couple of local lawyers they simply said that it was too far fetched to believe and just brushed us off." That's a polite way of saying she's lying.

You're leaving a lot out of this story or changing it for some sympathy.
Take some personal responsibility!

This is to the guy that stated that " LP doesnt have police powers, nor the power to detain a person". True enough we have no police powers but in some states (Texas) we have a right to detain a suspected thief or dishonest associate for a "reasonal amout of time" to conduct our investigation. Granted the time limit is usually 1 to 2 hrs. I have worked LP for ten years, and have never had a problem with "unreasonal times of detention". This type of incident makes of all look bad.

Ok some people who have no clue what they are talking about have responded to this compalint. I am a L.P. Investigator for a major retailer and i can assue you that the only time we interigate a employee is when we have hard evidence that they were steeling. If we bring someone in we already have the evidence we would need to get rid of Dishonest Employees. If a company large like Wal-Mart was to bring you in they would have to have evidence that would prove you were guilty. When we contact Law Enforcement they will look at the evidence that we have before they will continue their investigation.

We have a system in place where when a employee flags in the computer we will investigate them by following them on camera or sending in a lp from another store to see if we can get them to break the rules. We bust about 5 employees a month for theft. When we first bring in an employee they sign a form that they understand they can leave at any time, but if they leave and we have the evidence we need they will be deamed guilty and law enforcement will be contacted. People will sign this form and forget about it if they are guilty, they are so fixed on how to get out of this they just do it. But look at her employee handbook it might have something in there that employees must comply with loss prevention investigations.

For the comment made that Loss Prevention can not use force to detain someone, i can assue you that we can, we go through many classes to defend ourselfs and detain offenders. We often get into fights with people who dont want to be busted. We will pretty much do what it takes to recover merchandise, that is what we are paid for. The company lets us do this because we will be fired if we stop someone and they dont have our merchandise on them. So if we bring you back you will be guilty or we will be fired.

If she infact did not do anything than you would never have been convicted in a court of law and Wal-Mart would have no legal grounds to sue her, and i dont know how it is where you are but Colorado has a law in effect where when someone steels from our company we have the right to sue them up to $250.00. I know that this amount is common amoung most states so i dont know how they have you paying $400.00 a month. Unless they are recovering the value of the merchandise taken, they can do that too.

What they accussed her of was a hand off which is very common, employees will be checking out friends/family and they will pretend to ring an item on the register and them place it in their bag. I believe that the discount card was not the reason for the initial investigation, but she probibly admitted to it durring the interigation so they took that too. I think that there is more to the story than what your wife is saying, most family members that find out dont believe it, but it most likly happened.

If you still say she is inocent contact a lawer for more legal advise.

Ok some people who have no clue what they are talking about have responded to this compalint. I am a L.P. Investigator for a major retailer and i can assue you that the only time we interigate a employee is when we have hard evidence that they were steeling. If we bring someone in we already have the evidence we would need to get rid of Dishonest Employees. If a company large like Wal-Mart was to bring you in they would have to have evidence that would prove you were guilty. When we contact Law Enforcement they will look at the evidence that we have before they will continue their investigation.

We have a system in place where when a employee flags in the computer we will investigate them by following them on camera or sending in a lp from another store to see if we can get them to break the rules. We bust about 5 employees a month for theft. When we first bring in an employee they sign a form that they understand they can leave at any time, but if they leave and we have the evidence we need they will be deamed guilty and law enforcement will be contacted. People will sign this form and forget about it if they are guilty, they are so fixed on how to get out of this they just do it. But look at her employee handbook it might have something in there that employees must comply with loss prevention investigations.

For the comment made that Loss Prevention can not use force to detain someone, i can assue you that we can, we go through many classes to defend ourselfs and detain offenders. We often get into fights with people who dont want to be busted. We will pretty much do what it takes to recover merchandise, that is what we are paid for. The company lets us do this because we will be fired if we stop someone and they dont have our merchandise on them. So if we bring you back you will be guilty or we will be fired.

If she infact did not do anything than you would never have been convicted in a court of law and Wal-Mart would have no legal grounds to sue her, and i dont know how it is where you are but Colorado has a law in effect where when someone steels from our company we have the right to sue them up to $250.00. I know that this amount is common amoung most states so i dont know how they have you paying $400.00 a month. Unless they are recovering the value of the merchandise taken, they can do that too.

What they accussed her of was a hand off which is very common, employees will be checking out friends/family and they will pretend to ring an item on the register and them place it in their bag. I believe that the discount card was not the reason for the initial investigation, but she probibly admitted to it durring the interigation so they took that too. I think that there is more to the story than what your wife is saying, most family members that find out dont believe it, but it most likly happened.

If you still say she is inocent contact a lawer for more legal advise.

Ok some people who have no clue what they are talking about have responded to this compalint. I am a L.P. Investigator for a major retailer and i can assue you that the only time we interigate a employee is when we have hard evidence that they were steeling. If we bring someone in we already have the evidence we would need to get rid of Dishonest Employees. If a company large like Wal-Mart was to bring you in they would have to have evidence that would prove you were guilty. When we contact Law Enforcement they will look at the evidence that we have before they will continue their investigation.

We have a system in place where when a employee flags in the computer we will investigate them by following them on camera or sending in a lp from another store to see if we can get them to break the rules. We bust about 5 employees a month for theft. When we first bring in an employee they sign a form that they understand they can leave at any time, but if they leave and we have the evidence we need they will be deamed guilty and law enforcement will be contacted. People will sign this form and forget about it if they are guilty, they are so fixed on how to get out of this they just do it. But look at her employee handbook it might have something in there that employees must comply with loss prevention investigations.

For the comment made that Loss Prevention can not use force to detain someone, i can assue you that we can, we go through many classes to defend ourselfs and detain offenders. We often get into fights with people who dont want to be busted. We will pretty much do what it takes to recover merchandise, that is what we are paid for. The company lets us do this because we will be fired if we stop someone and they dont have our merchandise on them. So if we bring you back you will be guilty or we will be fired.

If she infact did not do anything than you would never have been convicted in a court of law and Wal-Mart would have no legal grounds to sue her, and i dont know how it is where you are but Colorado has a law in effect where when someone steels from our company we have the right to sue them up to $250.00. I know that this amount is common amoung most states so i dont know how they have you paying $400.00 a month. Unless they are recovering the value of the merchandise taken, they can do that too.

What they accussed her of was a hand off which is very common, employees will be checking out friends/family and they will pretend to ring an item on the register and them place it in their bag. I believe that the discount card was not the reason for the initial investigation, but she probibly admitted to it durring the interigation so they took that too. I think that there is more to the story than what your wife is saying, most family members that find out dont believe it, but it most likly happened.

If you still say she is inocent contact a lawer for more legal advise.

PLEASE READ MY REPORT ON A RECENT INCIDENT AT WALMART>

http://www.ripoffreport.com/view.asp?id=98903

I've worked for (and since fled from, to greener pastures) a retailor who's LP people have been frequently accused of such intimidation and coercive tactics.

I was un-officially accused of theft once, told by a temporary manager who's sexual advances I'd declined, that she had me "on video" stealing a personal cd player. (Utter nonsense, I have a pocket mini-disk player...smaller, doesn't skip, and legally purchased a few years back elsewhere, and simply am not a thief.)

I said "really? show me the tape."

Her reply: "I can't, that would be against the law since it's evidence at the police station."

My reply: "Then call them and file charges, I'll see you in court."

Of course she dropped it, without putting me through the LP hassle, but others in the company have faced similar accusations, and their tales are almost identical to the interrogations and tactics seen above.

You need to demand they "put up, or shut up" at the start. These hamfisted interrogations are often fishing expeditions, as often LP types assume (one told me this directly actually) "all employees steal from the company one way or another, so it doesn't matter if an individual actually committed one specific act." He basically felt as long as he busted SOMEONE, that was fine, it would scare the real perp into laying low or quitting. It also give his supervisors an image that he is pro-active.

If you have stolen anything, you are "sin loi" as my dad says, if not, read on.

KNOW YOUR RIGHTS.

LP will often pretend they have police powers, such as detaining you indefinately, searching your car or home. They don't have these powers, so don't let them manhandle you into anything.

Don't take a purse, bag, or rucksack into work, ever, so nothing can be planted while you are in your interrogation, and so nobody can accuse you of slipping things into that container.

Don't let them detain you, period. Unless they have the police on the way at that moment, or are calling them, they do not have that right, unless you give them permission. You can get up and walk out whenever you please, and they must let you or face wrongful imprisonment charges. That's why they like these grillings, as they scare and unbalance people into giving up their rights.

While many states technically do allow merchants to use force to detain those caught "red handed", few if any companies will allow force to be used, even when justified, for fear of civil liability.

Don't sign anything until you and your lawyer have gone over it. If LP doesn't want your lawyer to read it, then it's probably shady and groundless. Even the police must allow you access to legal counsel, and LP lacks the police powers they often claim.

Demand the interrogation take place in front of your lawyer. Be polite, but firm. Name, rank, and serial number here people. If they've got something solid, they will smile at it, as your lawyer will then advise you to cut a deal.

Expect to lose your job regardless of guilt or innocence, you'll likely be fired for refusing an LP interrogation, and most places are "at will employers." Note that "at will employment" does NOT entitle them to defame your character or slander you.

Loss of a retail job is a small price to pay to avoid a false criminal conviction, much less the dent in your personal pride.

I am sorry for your experience with the Loss prevention at walmart, I will try to help you understand.

It is true that the employees are given a discount card for them to use. This is only for the family members. It is against Walmart policy for your wife to give her card to her friends, or for friends to check out at her register. When your wifes friends use this discount card for there purpose then the employee is charged with what the policy calls under ringing. example only if you have a stero and the price is 150 dollars, your wife has a right for a 10 percent discount, not the general public. What your wife is trying to do is sell this to the general public at her 10 percent discount so the actual price is not charged, therfor your wife is then accused of stealing the 10 percent or under ringing the actual price.

If this was the first time that she had done this it is my recolection that the policy states that the card is then taken away from the employee and the previledge is then taken away of the 10 percent discount.

In order for her to fight this she really needs to hire an attorney. The meetings between the loss prevention division and employee are suppose to be taped either with a camara or with a tape recording. In court Walmart has the burden of proving that everytime the card was used that it was not used by the employee but by her friends and that she infact does owe the amount that they say she owes. There is no way for them to prove this. There is a print out that is sent to the lp if there seems to be an accessive use at which time the lp is to start an investigation. What the investigation includes is every time the card is used it can be matched to the time of the employee working. Since it is against Walmart policy for her to use it while she is working and not off the clock, then they can say that it was used by her friend, or she would be wrote up for using the card while on the clock. In some cases the card may be linked to a checkout that had a carmera on it, at which time they can see who the actual person was that used it. Keep in mind though the tapes are changed out every 30 to 60 days, unless they have held it out for your particular case thinking there will be some reprocutions.

I am sure that you can tell that I was a loss prevention employee, however I sued walmart and won. Please post your comments below if you have any questions I will be happy to try to help you

About a year ago a total of 8 people got fired from the Wal-Mart I worked at. They accused us of taking stuff. In order to fire other employees they pretty much forced us to say other names and snitch on them. The LP officer said that if we didn't give any names that they would have us arrested. They had no physical evidence of our "thefts" if any at all. Not even a single video tape or anything, just verbal statements. Our LP officer was dressed unprofessionally as he was wearing a hat with shorts and sandals. He also made racial remarks towards me due to my ethnicity which is Cuban. They came us with a total of $360 that I supposedly owed. When I asked how they came up with that amount they refused to answer my question. By me being 18 and scared of the LP officers threats I signed the documents and went along with the only other option I had.

Sincerely,



Alberto Romero

Obviously Wal-Mart NEVER had enough evidence to legitimately convict her of ANYTHING, or it would have been straight off to jail with her. They just kept threating her to get her to sign the paper. Without a (forced) confession they had NO evidence. If I were in her situation I would have demanded early on that the cops be called in. Unless the local police are really really corrupt, you have more rights in their jail cell than in a back room of Wal-Mart. Certainly do not sign anything that would admit guilt.

It sounds like she could claim quite correctly that the contract was signed "under duress", thus it would not hold up in court if they sue her for not paying. She should find the police officer who fed her that corporate line and get him in front of the judge to help her case.

It's fascinating that they reserve the right of calling all your employee discounts "theft" when they don't like you as an employee any more. Did they ever consider going after the friend who allegedly had the allegedly stolen merchandise?

I'd really like to know how common this is too. If you want to sue Wal-Mart, get at the back of a long line.