Pregnant mom arrested for forgetting to pay for sandwich

[Tekania]

The store's being ridiculous.

But they do have a point. They can arrest them for shoplifting.

no they can't... they can however do what htey did here, contact the authorities and detain them to they arrive, then the authorities can arrest them.

[Dakini]

Of course, the whole idea of not being able to wait those thirty minutes is grating to me.

This boggles me, too. Is that really so crazy to people?

I'm used to being hella busy, so it doesn't seem weird to me at all for somebody to find themselves famished while running errands once in a while. I especially find it bizarre when people get cranky at parents who let their kids have snacks because, I mean, have you ever BEEN around kids? They're like...always hungry. And if you're having to bring your kid along for errands, lord knows they're not going to cooperate by getting hungry at convenient times, and there's always some unexpected delay like the train being held up or the traffic being awful or somebody needing to go potty RIGHT NOW MOMMY RIGHT NOW, so yeah, sometimes you're in the middle of grocery shopping and a little tummy gets rumbly. You let em have a roll from the bakery or an apple from the cart, and you pay for everything when you ring up, and the store gets the same amount of money with one less screaming kid in aisle 2.

...You don't think that my sisters and I (there are four of us) didn't put our mother through this when she took us grocery shopping?

She still didn't let us snack in the store.

[Dakini]

Grocery stores run on very small profit margins. If they let everyone walk out with food they hadn't purchased and, on the off-chance they're caught, charge them normal price, they'd go broke. You're proposing removing the penalty for shoplifting basically.

Who is talking about letting people walk out without paying?

You're suggesting that the store is overreacting to this woman walking out without paying for the sandwich she ate.

[Bottle]

Here they weight fruit at the cash register. They have scales out, but they're analogue and not entirely accurate (plus there are kg and lbs and probably everyone would end up confused as hell).

I can see why weighed products would be an issue, although I don't see why you couldn't just tell the clerk that you ate an extra apple so they can double the heaviest apple in your bag or whatever.

My parents are both from small towns in Ohio where this behaviour was unacceptable though. So it's not a big city thing or anything like this.

Oh, definitely not necessarily a city thing, like I said my folks live in Minneapolis and that's where I grew up. I've never lived in a small town or rural area, so I can't compare city to "country" on this one.

But no, it's stealing to consume something you haven't purchased.

I take it you never go to a restaurant where you pay the bill at the end, then?

[Bottle]

Who is talking about letting people walk out without paying?

You're suggesting that the store is overreacting to this woman walking out without paying for the sandwich she ate.

Over-reacting, yes. Reacting appropriately would have been stopping her, sternly pointing out that she did not pay for an item, and then accepting the payment and an apology when she offered them.

[Bottle]

This boggles me, too. Is that really so crazy to people?

I'm used to being hella busy, so it doesn't seem weird to me at all for somebody to find themselves famished while running errands once in a while. I especially find it bizarre when people get cranky at parents who let their kids have snacks because, I mean, have you ever BEEN around kids? They're like...always hungry. And if you're having to bring your kid along for errands, lord knows they're not going to cooperate by getting hungry at convenient times, and there's always some unexpected delay like the train being held up or the traffic being awful or somebody needing to go potty RIGHT NOW MOMMY RIGHT NOW, so yeah, sometimes you're in the middle of grocery shopping and a little tummy gets rumbly. You let em have a roll from the bakery or an apple from the cart, and you pay for everything when you ring up, and the store gets the same amount of money with one less screaming kid in aisle 2.

...You don't think that my sisters and I (there are four of us) didn't put our mother through this when she took us grocery shopping?

She still didn't let us snack in the store.

No offense to her, but as a fellow shopper...I probably would wish she had.

[Dakini]

You're suggesting that the store is overreacting to this woman walking out without paying for the sandwich she ate.

Over-reacting, yes. Reacting appropriately would have been stopping her, sternly pointing out that she did not pay for an item, and then accepting the payment and an apology when she offered them.

So if I "forget" to pay for some $5 nail polish at the grocery store, I should just be stopped and someone should point out that I didn't pay and then I should just be able to go "Oh, my bad, here's the money" knowing full well that if they hadn't caught me I could have just walked on out without ever having to pay for it?

What's the difference here? Is it because she ate it? Is it because she practiced what you consider a socially acceptable act which resulted in her "forgetting" to pay? Is it because she's preggorz? She took an item, consumed it and then left the store without paying for it. There are laws against this.

[Lackadaisical2]

Of course, the whole idea of not being able to wait those thirty minutes is grating to me.

This boggles me, too. Is that really so crazy to people?

Not crazy, it just seems to be a public display of little self control.

I'm used to being hella busy, so it doesn't seem weird to me at all for somebody to find themselves famished while running errands once in a while. I especially find it bizarre when people get cranky at parents who let their kids have snacks because, I mean, have you ever BEEN around kids? They're like...always hungry. And if you're having to bring your kid along for errands, lord knows they're not going to cooperate by getting hungry at convenient times,

Kids are perhaps another issue altogether.

and there's always some unexpected delay like the train being held up or the traffic being awful

We don't have trains... or much traffic.

[Unslavery]

I take it you never go to a restaurant where you pay the bill at the end, then?

Completely irrelevant. At a restaurant, you are led to your seats, the waiter takes your order and he brings you the food and permits you to eat it.

[Dakini]

...You don't think that my sisters and I (there are four of us) didn't put our mother through this when she took us grocery shopping?

She still didn't let us snack in the store.

No offense to her, but as a fellow shopper...I probably would wish she had.

Kids will sometimes throw tantrums in the middle of the aisles because their parents won't buy them the cereal with the toy in it. Doesn't matter how well-fed they are.

[Lackadaisical2]

Over-reacting, yes. Reacting appropriately would have been stopping her, sternly pointing out that she did not pay for an item, and then accepting the payment and an apology when she offered them.

So if I "forget" to pay for some $5 nail polish at the grocery store, I should just be stopped and someone should point out that I didn't pay and then I should just be able to go "Oh, my bad, here's the money" knowing full well that if they hadn't caught me I could have just walked on out without ever having to pay for it?

What's the difference here? Is it because she ate it? Is it because she practiced what you consider a socially acceptable act which resulted in her "forgetting" to pay? Is it because she's preggorz? She took an item, consumed it and then left the store without paying for it. There are laws against this.

But she kept the wrapper, if she had intended to swipe the sandwich, wouldn't she have dropped it?

[Keronians]

The store's being ridiculous.

But they do have a point. They can arrest them for shoplifting.

no they can't... they can however do what htey did here, contact the authorities and detain them to they arrive, then the authorities can arrest them.

Nitpick much?

Fine, they can have them arrested by the authorities.

[Dakini]

So if I "forget" to pay for some $5 nail polish at the grocery store, I should just be stopped and someone should point out that I didn't pay and then I should just be able to go "Oh, my bad, here's the money" knowing full well that if they hadn't caught me I could have just walked on out without ever having to pay for it?

What's the difference here? Is it because she ate it? Is it because she practiced what you consider a socially acceptable act which resulted in her "forgetting" to pay? Is it because she's preggorz? She took an item, consumed it and then left the store without paying for it. There are laws against this.

But she kept the wrapper, if she had intended to swipe the sandwich, wouldn't she have dropped it?

Why? Maybe she likes to make sure she tosses things in the trash instead of littering. Maybe she didn't want to leave evidence behind.

Maybe I put the nail polish in my pocket because I decided later to get more items and didn't want to go back for a basket.

[The Rich Port]

Who is talking about letting people walk out without paying?

You're suggesting that the store is overreacting to this woman walking out without paying for the sandwich she ate.

What are YOU saying? Are you saying that $5 sandwiches are worth litigating over?

[Unslavery]

But she kept the wrapper, if she had intended to swipe the sandwich, wouldn't she have dropped it?

No, because if she had been seen dropping the wrapper, it would have been perfectly clear that she had no intention of paying for the food she had stolen.

[Dakini]

But no, it's stealing to consume something you haven't purchased.

I take it you never go to a restaurant where you pay the bill at the end, then?

No, a restaurant is a different set up than a grocery store.

Also, I've never left a restaurant and "forgot" to pay on my way out.

[Bottle]

Over-reacting, yes. Reacting appropriately would have been stopping her, sternly pointing out that she did not pay for an item, and then accepting the payment and an apology when she offered them.

So if I "forget" to pay for some $5 nail polish at the grocery store, I should just be stopped and someone should point out that I didn't pay and then I should just be able to go "Oh, my bad, here's the money" knowing full well that if they hadn't caught me I could have just walked on out without ever having to pay for it?

What's the difference here? Is it because she ate it? Is it because she practiced what you consider a socially acceptable act which resulted in her "forgetting" to pay? Is it because she's preggorz? She took an item, consumed it and then left the store without paying for it. There are laws against this.

Er, it's usually pretty easy to tell if somebody is sneaking an item in their pocket versus genuinely forgot to pay. Clerks handle this fine all the time. I don't see why it's being made into SUCH A FUCKING DEAL.

And no, her pregnancy is not relevant to me, which is why I haven't brought it up a single time.

[Lackadaisical2]

But she kept the wrapper, if she had intended to swipe the sandwich, wouldn't she have dropped it?

Why? Maybe she likes to make sure she tosses things in the trash instead of littering. Maybe she didn't want to leave evidence behind.

Maybe I put the nail polish in my pocket because I decided later to get more items and didn't want to go back for a basket.

Maybe, but it just seemed that this was likely a mistake and not a 'mistake'.

[Dakini]

So if I "forget" to pay for some $5 nail polish at the grocery store, I should just be stopped and someone should point out that I didn't pay and then I should just be able to go "Oh, my bad, here's the money" knowing full well that if they hadn't caught me I could have just walked on out without ever having to pay for it?

What's the difference here? Is it because she ate it? Is it because she practiced what you consider a socially acceptable act which resulted in her "forgetting" to pay? Is it because she's preggorz? She took an item, consumed it and then left the store without paying for it. There are laws against this.

Er, it's usually pretty easy to tell if somebody is sneaking an item in their pocket versus genuinely forgot to pay. Clerks handle this fine all the time. I don't see why it's being made into SUCH A FUCKING DEAL.

And no, her pregnancy is not relevant to me, which is why I haven't brought it up a single time.

Is it easy to tell? Really?

I have a friend who worked as a professional shopper. Her job was to catch shoplifters. There are people for whom shoplifting is their profession. If they're really good, they don't get caught. If they're really good, they can probably put on some sob story about how they forgot if they ever are caught. How are you going to tell the difference, exactly?

[Dakini]

Why? Maybe she likes to make sure she tosses things in the trash instead of littering. Maybe she didn't want to leave evidence behind.

Maybe I put the nail polish in my pocket because I decided later to get more items and didn't want to go back for a basket.

Maybe, but it just seemed that this was likely a mistake and not a 'mistake'.

Maybe, but it's not like the store can whether or not this is the case.

[Bottle]

I take it you never go to a restaurant where you pay the bill at the end, then?

No, a restaurant is a different set up than a grocery store.

But you agree that it is often the norm to go into a business, eat "their" food, and not pay until the end, right?

That's all it is to me, when people eat in the grocery store. If they try to leave without paying, they're stealing, and that's wrong. But if they pay for everything before they leave, there's nothing wrong with it, any more than it is wrong for me to eat a burger and THEN pay for it when I go to the pub.

Also, I've never left a restaurant and "forgot" to pay on my way out.

Me neither, but I'm inclined to give people the benefit of the doubt from time to time. It's like the Spiderman Rule: Everybody gets one. If somebody makes a habit of that sort of thing, I've got no problem calling them out, but if somebody makes one minor mistake and is willing to apologize and pay for it, then I don't see the point in treating them like crap over $5 of merchandise. You'll spend more making a stink out of it, and lose more business by being a jerk, than you would by just telling them to watch it in the future and letting them go on their way.

[Keronians]

Er, it's usually pretty easy to tell if somebody is sneaking an item in their pocket versus genuinely forgot to pay. Clerks handle this fine all the time. I don't see why it's being made into SUCH A FUCKING DEAL.

And no, her pregnancy is not relevant to me, which is why I haven't brought it up a single time.

Is it easy to tell? Really?

I have a friend who worked as a professional shopper. Her job was to catch shoplifters. There are people for whom shoplifting is their profession. If they're really good, they don't get caught. If they're really good, they can probably put on some sob story about how they forgot if they ever are caught. How are you going to tell the difference, exactly?

Does it even matter? $5 isn't worth arresting for, even if you can, just for the bad publicity you get, which is more harmful.

If it's the first time someone's doing it, then you can give them the benefit of the doubt. If they're doing it every week then you can have them arrested.

Even the friggin police officer attending the call must have burst out laughing in the middle.

[Bottle]

Er, it's usually pretty easy to tell if somebody is sneaking an item in their pocket versus genuinely forgot to pay. Clerks handle this fine all the time. I don't see why it's being made into SUCH A FUCKING DEAL.

And no, her pregnancy is not relevant to me, which is why I haven't brought it up a single time.

Is it easy to tell? Really?

I have a friend who worked as a professional shopper. Her job was to catch shoplifters. There are people for whom shoplifting is their profession. If they're really good, they don't get caught. If they're really good, they can probably put on some sob story about how they forgot if they ever are caught. How are you going to tell the difference, exactly?

Good fucking hell, now we're talking about professional thieves?!

THIS IS A WOMAN WHO ATE $5 WORTH OF SANDWICH.

We're not talking about somebody who was smuggling out 15 pounds of filet in her bloomers. I think the store can apply a little bit of judgment.

[Unslavery]

Is it easy to tell? Really?

I have a friend who worked as a professional shopper. Her job was to catch shoplifters. There are people for whom shoplifting is their profession. If they're really good, they don't get caught. If they're really good, they can probably put on some sob story about how they forgot if they ever are caught. How are you going to tell the difference, exactly?

Does it even matter? $5 isn't worth arresting for, even if you can, just for the bad publicity you get, which is more harmful.

If it's the first time someone's doing it, then you can give them the benefit of the doubt. If they're doing it every week then you can have them arrested.

Even the friggin police officer attending the call must have burst out laughing in the middle.

What if your business is selling newspapers on the high street? If people can just take what they want and assume immunity from prosecution, then you won't survive very long.

[Keronians]

Does it even matter? $5 isn't worth arresting for, even if you can, just for the bad publicity you get, which is more harmful.

If it's the first time someone's doing it, then you can give them the benefit of the doubt. If they're doing it every week then you can have them arrested.

Even the friggin police officer attending the call must have burst out laughing in the middle.

What if your business is selling newspapers on the high street? If people can just take what they want and assume immunity from prosecution, then you won't survive very long.

Except people can't just take what they want. Someone taking a newspaper and leaving is very clearly stealing, not forgetting to pay.