Remember Matt? He was detained by an off-duty police officer who was employed as a security guard by the Home Depot because he did not show his receipt. Matt complained about this to the Home Depot and received an apology from Frank Blake, the CEO. He also filed a formal complaint with the Metropolitan police. He says the police found his complaint to be unfounded.
civil rights
Washington D.C. Police Say Its OK For Off-Duty Cops To Detain You For Not Showing Receipt
By 6.19.08
CVS Doesn't Like Kids
By 6.18.08
Lisa sent us a short angry email about her local CVS, and how it treats local teens. Her local store separates customers into two lines, and the line containing the 18 and under crowd is only allowed into the store two at a time. The store employees say it’s to keep down shoplifting. Lisa thinks it’s blatant ageism, and she’s avoiding the store from now on. Teens can be annoying, but did CVS cross the line in punishing all for the bad actions of a few? Read her letter and leave your comments, inside.
Wal-Mart & Local Police Detain Man, Threaten Arrest Over 4 Bags Of Sugar
By 6.14.08
This guy was trying to make strawberry jam this morning, and he had to go buy 4 bags of sugar. The cashier threw away the original receipt but put the sugar in a couple of Wal-Mart shopping bags, so Ben left the store thinking everything was, you know, normal for a Saturday morning. Then he was stopped by a security guard, a store manager, and an off-duty police officer, all of whom went batshit crazy on Ben over his 4 bags of sugar and lack of receipt. Before it was over one of the shopping bags was ripped open, a bag of sugar lay broken open on the parking lot, the guard had threatened to kick Ben’s ass, and the police officer said, “you’d better not be lying to me.” Ben was marched back into the store so they could verify with his cashier that he wasn’t a sugar thief. Welcome to Wal-Mart, the police-state superstore where prices are low and civil rights don’t exist.
Wal-Mart Reports You To The Police For Not Allowing Them To Check Your Receipt
By 6.9.08
The epic conflict between shoppers and receipt checkers continues! Reader Michael was unwilling to wait in line to have his cart searched, prompting Wal-Mart to threaten to file a police report as they wrote down his license place…
H&R Block Says It Does Not Refuse Tax Returns For Same-Sex Civil Unions
By 4.7.08
H&R Block recently got into trouble because when a Connecticut same-sex couple tried to file their taxes through H&R Block’s website, the system spat back, “”We don’t support Connecticut Civil Union returns.” One of our readers wrote H&R Block about our post and their VP of Marketing actually wrote back to him to describe what she felt was media sensationalization of the story. She says that the problem happens because the Federal government doesn’t recognize same-sex civil unions. The information for state tax returns gets inputted based on the federal, so in this specific case, it’s not “flowing” correctly. It sounds like they’re working on fixing that, though. Here’s her email in full:
Court Says Man Can Continue To Sell Tasteless Walmart Parody T-Shirts
By 3.26.08
Timothy Batten in Atlanta ruled that Charles Smith may maintain his Web sites, http://www.walocaust.com and http://www.walqaeda.com. Smith also may continue to sell novelty, satirical merchandise that criticizes the company, the judge said.
Customer Convicted For Shoving 75-Year-Old Walmart Receipt Checker
By 3.14.08
Donald Lynch, certified public accountant, was convicted of misdemeanor assault after pushing a 75-year-old Walmart greeter who wanted to check his receipt, reports The Chronicle. Lynch said the greeter tried to block him by pushing against him with his shoulder. Security tape showed the greeter flying to the floor. While an employee has no right to touch you, you also don’t have a right to shove them on the floor, especially if they’re septuagenarian!
Man On Trial For Knocking Down Walmart Receipt Checker
By 3.12.08
Details are sketchy but a Chehalis Washington man is on trial after being accused of knocking down a Wal-Mart greeter. According to the AP report, Don Lynch says the greeter demanded to see his receipt and then the greeter and another Wal-Mart employee grabbed him. Lynch says he acted in self-defense.Now, we’ve done a bunch of posts about how, unless you’ve signed a membership agreement assenting to them, stores have no right to detain you if you refuse a receipt check. However, you cannot react violently. Then you will get in trouble and look like a jerk. Go for non-violent resistance. You must be like Gandhi. If someone touches you, ask them to stop. If they don’t, call the cops and complain that this guy won’t stop touching you. They’re not allowed to touch you, or for that matter, grab you.
California Supreme Court: Feel Free To Protest Inside The Mall
By 12.26.07
In a 4-to-3 decision, the court said a San Diego mall violated California law protecting free speech when its owners barred protesters from distributing leaflets in front of one of the mall’s stores, asking shoppers not to give the store their business.
Are Ice Cream Vendors A Public Nuisance?
By 10.17.07
The city of Portsmouth, Va. certainly seems to think so. An ice cream vendor who has been fined repeatedly for playing music from his truck has challenged the city’s regulations, claiming that they are a violation of his constitutional rights.
Sanchez drives a truck for Norfolk-based Jumpn’ G’s Ice Cream. He was convicted three times this summer in Portsmouth General District Court for the illegal use of noise from an ice cream truck.
Arbitration Firms Are Godless Bloodsuckers
By 10.2.07
n 2006, Richard Neely, a retired chief justice of the West Virginia Supreme Court, penned an article for The West Virginia Lawyer entitled, “Arbitration and the Godless Bloodsuckers.” The National Arbitration Forum asked him to be an arbitrator one time and Neely described his experience: [More]
Arbitration Firm Rules Against Consumers 95% Of The Time
By 9.28.07
A popular arbitration firm, the National Arbitration Forum, only finds in favor of consumers 5% of the time, a new study released today by advocacy group Public Citizen reports. [More]
All Charges Dropped Against Circuit City Receipt Refuser
By 9.21.07
Legal charges have been dropped against Michael Righi (pictured), the guy arrested after refusing to show his receipt to Circuit City, and his driver’s license to a police officer, in exchange for Righi’s pledge to not sue the city. On his blog, Righi writes that he was willing to fight the city to the end without forfeiting any rights whatsoever, but he wanted to spare his family, who would have been principal witnesses, from a protracted legal battle.
Why Stores Love To Force You To Show Your Receipts
By 9.18.07
A former Best Buy employee and Consumerist tipster in good standing shared some insider insights about why store employees are so zealous in checking your receipt, and so zealously underinformed as to how they have no legal right to make you show it.
Example Home Builder's Contract With Arbitration Clauses
By 9.12.07
This sample contract from Texas shows how many of your rights some builders try to make you throw away as a condition for using their services. It’s all right there in print, sometimes even capitalized, no right to a court or jury trial, evidence is limited, no recovery of attorney’s fees, no class actions are allowed, etc etc.
Receipt Check Policies For Costco, Sam's Club, And BJ's
By 9.6.07
In most cases, a receipt check is voluntary, but several wholesale shopping clubs make you agree to them as part of the membership contract.
Adventures In Receipt Check Refusals Continue
By 9.6.07
Rich in Michigan writes that a Michigan Sam’s Club employee foiled his efforts to circumvent the receipt-checking line.
I was detained in a Sams Club receipt-checking line today. When I attempted to steer my cart around the line and out the exit door, an employee with a nametag of ‘Linda’ stepped in front of my cart and asked me to surrender my receipt. When I asked if I was being detained, she assured me that I was…
Opt Out Of USAA's Arbitration Clause
By 9.4.07
USAA dropped a goose-egg in my mailbox today, a letter informing that there’s a new arbitration agreement being added to my AMEX contract. Lovely, I just love being stripped of my rights to a trial with due process.
