Non-rehirable? Damn, that'll be rough soon when Wally's is the only remaining employer in the U.S.A.

Lots of companies will fire you if you go after a shoplifter. It's pretty common. Walmart, Rite Aid, Borders, Grocery Stores, Video Rental stores, lots and lots and lots and lots of companies will fire you if you chase a shoplifter.

Not like never being able to work at Walmart again is such a bad thing, but he should have known better.

The very first things my first boss told me on my first day of work in my life way back when was "Don't try to stop thieves or shoplifters. I won't want any heroes. I will fire you immediately."

Glad to see someone with balls to stand up for justice. Good for him! (the chasing the bad guy down, not the getting fired during an economic meltdown where nobody is hiring).

Steal, then power walk away!

To be clearer - based on the story that is linked the shoplifter didn't display the weapon inside the store, it wasn't until he and the security officers were outside that he pulled the knife, Rutner's choice to chase was a split second one that cost him his job, but at least the knife welding shoplifter is off the street.

It also depends on a lot of factors on what security guards can and can't do (the policy of their employer). In places in Washington D.C. they have full arrest powers.

I don't understand why anyone wouldn't just follow a policy that lets them off the hook when a fleeing, armed suspect crosses an imaginary line. I hope I never have so much to prove that I'd risk leaving my loved ones behind to play John McClane at my local superstore.

Wal-Mart fires the one guy who gives a toot about his job enough to defend it. We all know you are NOT supposed to go after the shoplifters, but I do feel kinda bad for the guy.

"Rutner says they told him it's a non-rehirable offense, meaning he can never work at Walmart again."

Blessing in disguise.

While I understand it was a policy he was probably informed about, I still feel bad for him. I'd do the same thing really. I mean, c'mon, he works at Walmart and probably has a lot of pent up frustration concerning his job. He was probably looking forward to the day he could beat the ever loving crap out of someone.

I work at a family run sporting goods store and I think our unofficial policy is to grab a bat and chase the person down and beat the crap out of them. This is definitely due to having to deal with some of the customers we have to deal with. It would be worth the price of the bat tenfold.

The lesson from this is if you shop lift and get caught, quickly remind them that chasing you will get them fired and then take off. I think they also get arrested for grabbing your, touching you or trying to restrain you. So pretty much if you refuse to cooperate, you can get away free and clear assuming none recognize you for later (just park the car elsewhere so no license plate to write down).

@kingdom2000: Steal, and power walk away to victory?

@El_Fez: I wouldn't call a random civilian chasing down an armed robber "justice." This is just egging on a crazy person that's probably not afraid to knife random people to get away. "Absent minded" and "negligent" are more appropriate terms in my book.

Let the people who are trained and supposed to handle these situations handle them. That's justice. If something like this happens after your employer makes it very clear that you'd be in hot water for risking you're life to save a $0.99, made-in-China piece of junk, then you're nothing more than a huge liability.

@nakkypoo:

You know what's kind of funny? My first boss, who was also related to me in some convoluted way (you'd never have known it by the way he treated/treats me), told me "If anyone fucks with you, you take this pepper spray and spray it all over their face. I mean ANYONE. If some guy comes in and tries to steal shit, pepper spray him. If anyone starts shit with you, pepper spray him. After you pepper spray those fuckers, call me and then call the cops. Got it?" Yeah crazy relative, got it...

@kingdom2000:

Haha, great idea! Someone should go grab a couple Xboxes and then run out the store yelling NYAH NYAH ITS AGAINST COMPANY POLICY TO CHASE ME LOOOOSERS or something.. see what happens.

@trujunglist: hilarious. "yo boss, you gonna pay for my lawyer when i get sued for pepper=-spraying people?"

@jeff: In places in Washington D.C. they have full arrest powers.

Are you sure? Maybe the security guards you're thinking of are actually police officers. But as far as I know, in order to have arrest powers, you have to be a sworn officer through the state (or district, as it were).

@dukegreene: I agree with you, I know I certainly wouldn't be chasing somebody already outside of a store, especially if they had a knife. On the other hand, I can kind of understand why he did it. He probably just got caught up in the moment and felt like he could stop the guy.

WalMart is just trying to save money. If Paul Blart here gets knifed WalMart has to pay. If he harms the shoplifter WalMart will get sued, and they'll have to pay. Heck, if our intrepid hero trips and knocks himself out WalMart is on the hook.

Lower prices, every day. WalMart.

In all honesty, major props to the security guard. We all have to take a stand against crime. One reason it's as bad as it is stems from our tolerance of it and or failure to get directly involved. This guy felt capable of doing something and he should be applauded for taking that stand for the rest of us.

@TCama:

They work for a private security firm - the have full arrest powers for the area(s), they also usually are armed.

Steven Seagal is sad :-(

@nakkypoo: I worked at Victoria's Secret in college. We had all these procedures we had to do to confront a suspected shoplifter. We had a crew in one day that was shoplifting perfume and whatnot, and my boss wanted us to get them, so they were calling us over the headsets to watch them steal (several people have to witness a shoplifting before you can confront). When they saw one of the shoplifters produce a knife (they didn't threaten us with it, but they were using it to cut off security tags), they called us all off, and told us to act like we hadn't seen anything. They stole a few thousand dollars worth of stuff from us, but it wasn't worth anyone getting shanked over. I really hated my job by the end of it, but I was glad they had that much common sense.

For once I am in agreement with Walmart. I used to work in security, and I can tell you that one security officer doesn't equal one cop. The police are trained to handle violent situations, and security officers are not so trained. These security officers should have notified the police, and let them take care of the offender. The security officer is also represents the company he or she works for and the store can be held libel for the officer's actions.

@nakkypoo: Had a boss like that years ago at Eckerd (pre-JCPenny)/(now Rite Aid.) He was pounding some shelves into place with a 3lb rubber mallet, and some guy started loading up on Sudafed. Boss goes and says to put it back, guy pulls a knife, boss beats him into a coma with the rubber mallet. The security cameras caught it all. Boss got a slap on the wrist for approaching the shoplifter, and a $5000 reward from Crimestoppers for this guy.

@Conrad: It doesn't seem that he cared about the shoplifting. He was attempting to stop somebody who had intent to harm.

...and yet they've chased me out the door before when I refused to show my receipt. No one got fired over that one.

@nakkypoo: Good for your boss.

I'm tired of these wanna be heroes and Jackie Chan's wanting their 15 minutes of fame and adulation in the media for being a "hero." No one was being hurt in the vicinity, he didn't have to help anyone. His excuse was pretty asinine.

There's nothing "brave" about what he did I don't care what spin people put on it.

This isn't the first time I read of these John Wayne's out there. Enough is enough.

@jeff: Here in SC there are multiple "tiers" of security guards. Your average "mall cop" has no arrest powers and the only requirement to be licensed by the state is that you have no violent felonies. The next level is that of armed security, which allows you to carry a Tazer or a firearm to protect whatever you are tasked to protect. You have no arrest powers, but have discretionary powers with regards to use of force. Usually reserved for armed bank security, armored car security, armed couriers, and the like. You must have a clean record with no felonies or gross misdemeanors. Finally, there are "special security services" personnel. These guys are armed bodyguards, private military contractors, or guards for sensitive locations (such as nuclear reactors.) They have broad powers to include arrest powers in some cases, and you don't want to screw with guys who practice with 500 rounds of 5.56 a week. I've seen guys at this level be fired for not disclosing traffic tickets, and the licensing requirements are as stringent or even more so in some cases than to be a LEO.

This guy, if he was actually security as opposed to loss prevention or a greeter, is probably the first.

Then what's the point of even having a security guard?

I worked in a place in high-school, decades ago, that gave cash bonuses if you caught a shoplifter and the shop lifter was convicted.

@supercereal: I concur, there are certain things worth risking your life for, and walmart just isn't one of them. Even if your principle driven, certain principles need to be let go for the sake of survival.

@ptkdude:
Its company policy to harass paying customers. So, they were following instructions.

It is specifically against company policy to not chase non-paying customers. Therefore giving them an enjoyable Wal-Mart experience.

It's a good thing they're checking receipts

@Bog: That's my question. Do they only handle shoplifters that are compliant?

@kelrod:
Not if it's the only place in his area actually hiring.

@Bog:
Supposedly, the mere presence of security deters would-be thieves.

In slow motion? Sliding across the hood of a Torino? While the police chief accused him of not going by the book? As his partner gets shot one day before retirement? With a partner cop who's his total opposite, yet they make a great team?

@legwork: Don't worry, they'll only have half the jobs. The rest will be from the Federal Government

@TheObserver: Oh, c'mon now -- didn't you ever see Spiderman?

Here is my question. What if I am robbed while shopping at Walmart? As the thief is exiting out of the building I inform a Walmart Security. If security fails to stop him, can I sue Walmart? Many of them are dressed so much like an officer of the law they even wear a badge.

I can understand how having the title of security guard makes you feel obligated to do something in this kind of situation, and I totally understand that if he didn't do anything he would have considered himself that much more useless for the rest of his employment.

However, since it is a company policy he should be aware of, I think it's kind of stupid that he went after the guy. It's not your merchandise, it's Walmarts. Why should you care if they lose an item? they can afford it, and it really isn't your problem. I would be a little happy on the inside that somebody is sticking it to them.

@legwork: What an appropriate user name for this story.

@nakkypoo: The thing is though, if you're an adult who's working at Walmart for any reason other than putting yourself through college, never being able to work there again probably is a bad thing.

Lucky him. I will not shop Wal-mart, I could only imagine the poor idgets that have to work there. I would imagine most never graduated High School and that's a shame. I really hope that one day Wal-mart will be taken down but after seeing pictures of the kinds of redneck people who shop there I feel sad knowing it will probably never happen in my life time.

I understand the policy that most corporations have established about not chasing/confronting criminals; it's clearly for fear of being sued by the families of employees slain in the "line of duty" so to speak.

What I don't understand, though, is why they continue to employ security guards who are not allowed to take steps to, you know, keep security.

@calquist: No, Walmart fires the one guy with no regard to the safety of himself or others. Remember, being chased makes the robber more likely to use the knife, and a good chance he uses it on some random guy in the parking lot.

@Stillgot24hours: It wouldn't be worth it if the guy pulled a gun and shot him.

@Paladin_11: "If Paul Blart here gets knifed WalMart has to pay."

If he gets knifed, well, someone got knifed. I'm not a fan of Wal-mart, but I'm pretty sure keeping employees alive is more important to them than worker's comp.

@bigd7387: This is a candidate for disemvoweling. There are probably Wal-mart employees that read this, some who have college degrees, and almost all who've graduated high school.

@TheObserver:

Er, did it ever occur to you that this adult has the right to decide if his principle is worth his job?

What makes you think that he was being disingenuous about his reason for chasing down the thief?

I'm tired of people complaining about people doing the right thing. Your reasoning that "no one was being hurt" can be applied here. He's not hurting you, so why the condescension?