Some Leeway for the Small Shoplifter (Wal-Mart won't prosecute $25 or less

[kskiska]

Wal-Mart refuses to carry smutty magazines. It will not sell compact discs with obscene lyrics. And when it catches customers shoplifting — even a pair of socks or a pack of cigarettes — it prosecutes them.

But now, in a rare display of limited permissiveness, Wal-Mart is letting thieves off the hook — at least in cases involving $25 or less.

According to internal documents, the company, the nation’s largest retailer and leading destination for shoplifting, will no longer prosecute first-time thieves unless they are between 18 and 65 and steal merchandise worth at least $25, putting the chain in line with the policies of many other retailers.

Under the new policy, a shoplifter caught trying to swipe, say, a DVD of the movie “Basic Instinct 2” ($16.87) would receive a warning, but one caught walking out of the store with “E.R. — The Complete Fifth Season” ($32.87) would face arrest.

more…
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/13/business/13walmart.html?ei=5094&en=6a5fe7409934d1c9&hp=&ex=1152849600&adxnnl=1&partner=homepage&adxnnlx=1152765735-rDD1fQ6kCOor2FftwbxDHw

[rsmith6621]

1. To Bad Wally World Cant....

Be arrested for stealing the lifeblood out of its employees.x(

[Broken_Hero]

2. that makes sense...

to let the small stuff go...most of there money lost by theft, isn't the little things...in 2003, the most stolen item was 27 inch tvs...and in 2004, the most stolen item was Passion of the Christ dvd, at wally world..figures huh?

In my experience a lot of stores, let people go, if they try stealing little things. My brother got caught numerous times stealing gum, but they let him go with a warning, but when he tried stealing a compact disc player, they put the screws to him, which was good, because he finally learned his lesson...

on edit:spelling

[muryan]

3. quite ironic

thou shalt not steal? :rofl:

[Canuckistanian]

4. The Passion of the Christ DVD??

The most stolen item?? Un-bee-lievable. Says a lot about the state of "Christian morality" in America, doesn't it?

:crazy:

[Broken_Hero]

5. Well, don't flame me

but my wife works for their home offices, for the past 7 yrs. She use to work at their accounting annex, so this info is legit. In 2003, 27 inch tvs, and in 2004 passion of the christ dvds....also, food for thought, the biggest bloc of buying power, that shops at walmart, isn't conservatives, but the GLBT community...weird huh?...:)

[shadowknows69]

7. Don't flame me but

I'm going shopping heh. Couple cd's I have my eye on.

[Broken_Hero]

8. no flames from me

I usually don't buy cds at walmart, because of the censorship bullcrap...

[Canuckistanian]

9. I wouldn't flame you for that

Sounds like your wife has a decent job with Wally world (unlike many others).

But.... wow... Passion of the Christ... that just blows me away.

[Broken_Hero]

10. yeah, it blew me away too...

and thanks for the no flames...seems at times DU takes its anti-walmart stuff, pretty seriously...:)

[madrchsod]

14. someone walked out of our walmart with a 27 inch flat screen..

then the next night another load of electronic stuff...they have one really bad photo of one of the people involved

[Broken_Hero]

6. yes it does...

when my wife asked me, what I thought the most stolen item was in 2003, i said, cosmetics, like lipstick, rouge, things like that, but I was WAAAY wrong, it was 27 inch tvs...and in 2004, I guessed ipods, or mpeg players, and I was WAAAY wrong again, and LOL when she said it was the Passion of the Christ DVD...ironic, no doubt..:)

[Literate Tar Heel]

11. um

how exactly does one go about walking out of a Wal-Mart with a 27" TV hidden under their jacket?

[Broken_Hero]

12. shitty door greeters...

they dont' check the tags, and in most cases, the alarms at walmart don't work...and the most famous one, tape a walmart reciept to the side of the box, and act like you all ready paid for it...but, since 03, they have tightened the screws on the tvs...hence, why Passion was most stolen in 2004...what walmart is trying to do nowadays, is put one of those magnetic strips, into "All" of their products to cut down on theft...

On a side note, in xmas of 03, my wife and I watched a couple walk out of a walmart store in joplin, loaded down, with a 27 inch tv, and various other things, and the alarm went off, but the door greeter did nothing...which, I can't blame them for(door greeter), cause in most cases, the door greeters are 60yrs old, if not older.

Just a month ago, or less...i was at their lawn/garden area, loaded down with some items, and my father in law, pushed my cart outside, past the alarm things, and they didn't go off...

[silverojo]

16. Their alarms work only when you DON'T shoplift something

The alarms have gone off on a few occasions for us, when we bought things at Wal-Mart. (Yes, I'm guilty...but we had to have a microwave oven to heat up food for my ailing aunt, after ours broke down at midnight...where else can you get a microwave at that hour?) Of course, we'd paid for the merchandise. Yet people who really DO steal stuff get away with it. Sheesh!!

[Broken_Hero]

17. I haven't had that happen to me

at walmart yet, but the target up in lawrence, i got dinged twice...and the little rent a cop, swaggered over, ready to bust me for stealing...but alas, I had my reciept for the cds i bought, and the little cop, didn't get to arrest me...:)

[RangerSmith]

19. They don't need to put it under a coat...

they have check outs in the back of the store. People just load it on a cart and push it on out acting like they aren't doing anything wrong.

[KansDem]

23. That would explain how the 27-inch TVs were stolen as described above.

I initially thought the shoplifters must have worn really baggy overcoats...

[madrchsod]

13. cost`s to much money to go to court

i have a friend that is in theft control for a major big box. they issue a ticket,put the lifter on a banned list/picture,and that`s it. the expense of going to court is way more than 25 dollars

[Hardrada]

15. Don't they sell DVD's wherein people say "Fuck" and other such

expressive words??

[LostinVA]

20. Yes, but NOT cds that do...

[Sherman A1]

18. Cost vs benefit

It all boils down to how much loss you can accept vs the cost of security and employees to watch. Stores with the self checkouts (U Scans) take some serious losses, but they still think that is less than have more checkers to ring up your orders. The shoplifting of the Passion of Christ is simply funny (and sad), the 27" TV's isn't surprising at all. Like everything else, it's about experience and luck.

[Joe Bacon]

21. ...like there's something I would actually want to take from a Wal Mart...

So glad there's a Costco only 2 miles from me!

http://www.costco.com

[Javaman]

22. So what is with this new wave of sanity that has hit china mart?

Could it be that the little Doc, "the high cost of low prices", have anything to do with their new wave of sanity?

First they improve (not greatly) health care for their employees, then they want to go organic, then they call in Al Gore to lecture them on Global warming, now this? Is hell freezing over?

[seriousstan]

24. If caught stealing “Basic Instinct 2”, you have an insanity defense anyhow

I think that would fly in any court in the land, especially if you showed the movie in court.