You have got to be kidding me!!

[annageckos]

I am glad so many people have never made a mistake.

I am actually surprised by the lack of compassion and understanding by some. We always ate something while shopping with my grandmother when I was young. I have, as a adult, done the same. I am also diabetic and sometime I need something to eat right then and there. I don't have the time to go all the way up to the registers, wait in line and pay if my blood sugar is low and I am dizzy. By the time I do that I could be passed out. Yes I normally carry something with sugar with me, but I am human after all and sometimes forget. I do pay for the item, although there has been a time or two when I had forgotten and when back in a paid for the item. The way I it see is like this. They made a mistake and forgot, they tried to do the right thing and pay for the items, but the store refused. Now the tax payers have to pay for the court date, police time and the care the child received.

 

[Carols Clucks]

My boys work for Safeway, just so you know.


And I have been pregnant before, but I can tell you that I have never felt the need to eat a sandwich while shopping, let alone two of them. If I was that hungry, I would have bought my lunch, paid for it, ate it and THEN went grocery shopping. FYI much cheaper to shop on a full stomach. Of course they were going to pay for them once they forgot and were stopped by the store staff. But, the grocery store has people steal all the time and they have to treat everyone the same. No exceptions. Have you noticed that they have to lock up baby formula? Being a parent does not mean you were not there to bring your child shoplifting. Many parents get busted hiding stuff in the baby stroller. The police usually charge the parent with some form of child endangerment because the parent is using them to commit a crime.



The real issue is that the police took the child in to their care, that should have been something they attempted to avoid by hopefully contacting a family member.

 

[Stacykins]

It really seems wrong to me to eat an item before paying, even if you intend to do so. Seriously, does it take that long to pay for the items? Nope. That is what people should do, pay if they are desperate and then continue shopping with the food item officially being yours. I know one time when I went shopping with housemates (grocery shopping was a huge en devour that took HOURS), I was struck with a most awful headache. So I told my friend's I'd be back, went and bought a small bottle of ibuprofen and an energy drink (since caffeine can help), paid for it, then returned to shop with them. I just kept the receipt in my pocket in case an employee thought I was stealing the drink and pills.

 

[KristyHall]

Quote:
both my parents are diabetic, including my step father who is on insulin shots, my mother for a long time was a single parent who worked full time and went to school and one of the children had emotional issues and was special needs which makes shopping very difficult. I only saw her eat anything before paying for it ONCE. she had a sugar crash. she grabbed a candy bar held it up to show a nearby cashier and said " i am a diabetic experiencing a crash" and she ate it then payed for it while standing right there.

Yes people make mistakes. Including committing crimes, even if they are small ones. We don't actually know if what this woman or the article is saying the truth or if the grocers are saying the truth but I suspect there is more to this story than written, as ether often is.

The gist of the problem is, eating before you pay fro something whether you have the intention of paying for it or not, is inappropriate, rude, and in some cases unsanitary. It is rude and in some eyes it is a form of stealing.

And yes, people make mistakes and people pay teh consequences for those mistakes. I did not realize the speed limit had changed on a road and got a ticket. Did I blame the officer who gave me the ticket? No I payed for my mistake without complaint.

A kid trespasses and accidently breaks something and gets caught. should he blame the people who's property he was on for his night in jail? absolutely not. HE trespassed, HE broke something, intentional or not.

I would have more sympathy for the woman if she had not openly snacked on two sandwiches in the store before paying for them. If she had just accidently walked out with the items that is one thing. But eating them before paying is another. The store can not know weather she was lieing or telling the truth.

I do believe the punishment should fit the crime. I also believe in compassion for those who make mistakes or break the law in desperation which goes back to the punishment fitting the crime. I also believe that we can not fully understand both sides since we were not there.

 

[gritsar]

Quote:
both my parents are diabetic, including my step father who is on insulin shots, my mother for a long time was a single parent who worked full time and went to school and one of the children had emotional issues and was special needs which makes shopping very difficult. I only saw her eat anything before paying for it ONCE. she had a sugar crash. she grabbed a candy bar held it up to show a nearby cashier and said " i am a diabetic experiencing a crash" and she ate it then payed for it while standing right there.

Yes people make mistakes. Including committing crimes, even if they are small ones. We don't actually know if what this woman or the article is saying the truth or if the grocers are saying the truth but I suspect there is more to this story than written, as ether often is.

The gist of the problem is, eating before you pay fro something whether you have the intention of paying for it or not, is inappropriate, rude, and in some cases unsanitary. It is rude and in some eyes it is a form of stealing.

And yes, people make mistakes and people pay teh consequences for those mistakes. I did not realize the speed limit had changed on a road and got a ticket. Did I blame the officer who gave me the ticket? No I payed for my mistake without complaint.

A kid trespasses and accidently breaks something and gets caught. should he blame the people who's property he was on for his night in jail? absolutely not. HE trespassed, HE broke something, intentional or not.

I would have more sympathy for the woman if she had not openly snacked on two sandwiches in the store before paying for them. If she had just accidently walked out with the items that is one thing. But eating them before paying is another. The store can not know weather she was lieing or telling the truth.

I do believe the punishment should fit the crime. I also believe in compassion for those who make mistakes or break the law in desperation which goes back to the punishment fitting the crime. I also believe that we can not fully understand both sides since we were not there.

From the article there is only one side of the story, the couple that took the sandwiches.

 

[bakerjw]

Where would we be if shoplifters would get the option of paying for what they stole if they got caught outside of the store? Is $1 stolen any different than $100 stolen? The son of a friend of mine had his bike stolen and the police caught the thief short time later. The DA decided to not press charges. My friend asked him to explain it to his son. They met with the DA and he explained that they don't always prosecute crimes if they are under a certain value. My friend's son looked up at the DA and asked "How much can I steal then before I have to worry about you doing anything to me?"

Now for the other side. There was major overreaction on the part of the store as well as child services.

 

[toochicky]

While I dont think that the punishment fit the crime,..There was a crime committed.

Rules are rules. They shoplifted. If they made an exception for this, then what about the next person who walks out after "accidentally forgetting to pay".

IMO they shouldn't have called the cops on a first time offense. They should have just taken their pictures, made them pay and told them next time charges would be pressed.

 

[cassie]

Quote:
Have you taken a good look at the length of the checkout line sometimes? I hate to stand in them once, let alone twice. I would probably done exactly what those people did. And you have to look at cost vs. benefit. What did Safeway win/lose over this? Chances are they lost a steady customer. If they have reason to believe these people are habitual shoplifters and they don't want them as customers, that is a good thing. If they are not and it was an honest mistake, it is not. That is for Safeway to decide.

I once saw a woman, an owner of a pump and irrigation supply company, throw away a six figure account over a washer costing 14 cents. This steady long time customer came in, placed an order, and picked up the washer on his way out. He showed it to the owner as he walked toward the door. She wrote him out a ticket for it. He came right back in, paid the 14 cents, cancelled the order he had just made and took his business down the street to her competitor. The owner of the second business promptly sent Ms. Tightwad a large bouquet of flowers as a thank you. She never did understand why.....

 

[Capvin]

The Huffington Post has been doing a national poll on this story and I am extremely thankful that the results so far are that 70% had the same reaction as the original poster and that is that the store over reacted. In fact, the store believes that it over reacted. I really thank God that so far only 30% think that it was handled OK. I am sorry, but it does seem that there are an awful lot of people here who agree with the 30%. Glad you are in the minority.

 

[rodriguezpoultry]

As far as we know, this may not be a first offense. More than likely, they had done something similar to this before and were "noted" in the books at the store. Hence why the store was keeping a close eye on them. When they succeeded in leaving the store without paying for the items...just saying.