Behind The Blue Door: What you should know about Walmart surveilance polocies

Joki42
Walmart holds that everyone is equal. No profiling. When you walk through the doors you recieve the same treatment as everyone else. BS. If you are well dressed and clean cut you pretty much have full access to any part of the store. If you have dread locks, tattoos, or are wearing anything other than slacks and a polo, LP is on you. They follow you during your whole time there. If you are a teen girl and go to cosmetics, LP is watching you. LP is not allowed to stop you unless they physically see you hide something on your person. Even then they can not force you to the back or submit to a search. If you refuse to stop, oh well. They are not allowed to follow anyone into the parking area. If they see you pocket something and then loose sight of you for even a second, they can not stop you. It is assumed that you had the oportunity to return the item. There is a protocal they must follow which is to maintain eye contact at all times up untill you try and leave.

Man the LP's around where I live in Baltimore must be busy non-stop then. You go people watching at these walmarts and see all the crazies with the wildest clothing choices. People in nice clothes are a rarity.

But anyways, you just gave me another good reason not to ever shop at walmart. The only times I've ended up at walmart is if I REALLY need to buy something and the other stores are closed or a friend drags me there. For instance I can't remember the last time I've stepped foot inside of a walmart.

beautyndissonance
I work at the home office and most if not all of us frequent other retail establishments because our founder encouraged us to go out and see what other companies do better than we do.

Hmmmmm...doesn't that 'our founder' just have a 'Dear Leader' ring to it??

I am going to have to disagree with the OP in general. That being said I don't work where he is from, so anything is possible.

What I can add is that when I patrol, I work in an area where there is a super Wal-Mart. We average about 2 shoplifting calls there a day. They usually result in an arrest being made.

I have been doing this for the last 10 years and have become close with the head Loss Prevention Officer there. He is awesome at what he does. Let's just say he creates a lot of work for me.

In the hundreds of arrests I have made there, I have never once heard or seen a suspects banking credentials being checked. I am usually with the LPO in his office when all of the paper work is being filled out.

What happens once a suspect is caught is as follows, the LPO fills out a sworn statement, signs an affidavit for theft and signs a trespass after warning document. This is all my paperwork. He then makes me a copy of the video. He then usually takes a picture of the suspect. At that point he completes his report (sometimes I am there when he does, sometimes I am not). The only other thing I have seen him do is email the suspects picture and information (Name,DOB) to other Wal-Marts in the area. Basically he is issuing the law enforcement equivalent of a be on the lookout (BOLO). This is obviously a just in case/fyi for other Wal-Marts, in case the suspect tries to pull a fast one in a different store.

That is what I have experienced with Wal-Mart loss prevention. I am not quite sure why they would want or need to access a suspects banking statements. As a police officer I can't even access someones banking info without consent or a warrant.

The only information really needed would be if he had stolen from and/or been trespassed from a Wal-Mart before.

Just my observations.

reply to post by TorqueyThePig


Interesting...but even in the scenario you descibe, why does a Wal Mart LPO have a right to detain a suspect? Store security are not sworn officers of the law.

Why are they taking pictures and circulating them? The person is simply accused, not convicted.

Sounds like you got to have the experience of working with adults who behave like 8th graders. Gossipy, one person out while the others band together, etc. It sounds like the LP's should have someone overseeing their behavior.

reply to post by kosmicjack


I don't recall saying that the LPO detained the suspect. I will have to review my previous post. That being said, what happens a majority of the time is the LPO confronts them and informs them of the situation. He then asks them if they will follow him to his office and wait for the police. Most of the time they are cooperative and comply with his request.

If they flee he will not physically detain them. He will simply let us know where he is at and we well take action. This of course brings another charge against the suspect, resisting a merchant without violence.

I have noticed a change in procedure though. He is not really following them out of the store anymore. Once they pass all points of sale and exits the store he just informs us of a last know direction of travel. I am sure it is a liability thing.

As for the photograph, I guess it is no different then a mugshot being taken of a suspect. I will have to ask him if it is a voluntary request. I mean in reality I don't think it is a crime for you to take one photograph of me in public and send it to other people. I will have to check on that too.

acacko

Joki42
reply to post by VoidHawk

 

Yes. If you walk in off the street and buy headphones and leave, and an employee, customer or LP suspects you of a crime, the LP manager can access your bank statement. If he feels good reason to believe you might have done something he will call stores you shop at and ask for their info about you or that they need to watch for you.

...and how do they know where you bank?

The numbers on your card give away the type of card (visa, mastercard, amex, etc) as well as which bank issued the card. Many people with a credit card at a particular bank will most likely also have a checking account there as well. I used to work for Bank of America's credit card department, these are things you learn there.

P.S. I could start my own thread similar to this one talking about how BoA runs their cc department and who they employ and it would be just as infuriating.

TorqueyThePig
reply to post by kosmicjack

 

This of course brings another charge against the suspect, resisting a merchant without violence.

I've never used this term before, but how is that even a thing?

reply to post by Joki42


I do know what happened to my hubby and I. It was about 10:00 at night and the toilet stopped up at my parents house. So only thing open, Wal-Mart, Hubby and I went to find anything that would work. I was in the aisle that had the liquid stuff and was reading all the labels to see which I thought was best. Hubby was on another aisle looking for plumping stuff. Out of nowhere this guy appeared scared me to death. I told him what I was looking for and he was helpful. Got hubby and ran out of that Wal-Mart.

A few weeks or so later at Christmas we were looking at toys and looked for someone to help us no one was found. Hubby reached and asked if I could see the price on a Remote Control Truck out of no where and I mean nowhere, this was late at night also ( we prefer shopping late we are old and less people) here comes some guy with all the information we needed, I was once again spooked out of my mind. We left. That told to me we were watched every second in Wal-Mart. I don't go there unless it is a must have and nobody else has it.

Aleister

TorqueyThePig
reply to post by kosmicjack

 

This of course brings another charge against the suspect, resisting a merchant without violence.

I've never used this term before, but how is that even a thing?

That sounds like something made up by merchant marines at a store like Best Buy.

Semper Hi-Fi

reply to post by TorqueyThePig


Well, you used the term "caught", which would imply detained.

reply to post by BASSPLYR


Sorry Screwed up the post

reply to post by puptuls


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reply to post by puptuls


They make them do an orchestrated happy dance at the start of their shifts? First I've heard of that (I must be out of some loops). Can the employees opt out of this without being seen as an "outsider"? Strange.

I suppose maybe that "corporate person" hoohah is coming back to bite them in the duff...

Probably not....

I've worked retail, not at WM but shoplifting is a huge problem. A certain amount seems to be expected but I think more drastic measures are reserved for repeat offenders/employees. It's theft so I imagine LE resources are shared.

I don't doubt your story and know all too well what goes on at individual workplaces can be very different from corporate office expectations/perceptions. Managers can get...creative/full of themselves. They're very good at covering their @sses even if it goes against corporate policy.

My sis-in-law was a shoplifter, she worked it like a job. We didn't know until she was finally caught, tackled/carried away and arrested. She was shown video of her stealing from different stores. She was told facial recognition software was used and when she entered the mall grounds alarms went off. Apparently her image was shared with several other stores in the area. My sis-in-law claimed they knew everything about her and had been tracking her for sometime.

The last time we went to WM we were looking for insoles in the shoe department. We were the only ones in the department except for one guy standing there with an empty cart. I didn't see anyone shopping nearby, he was just standing there.

He told us a display was set up by the pharmacy and we should look there. I thanked him but as we walked away I thought the whole thing was a bit odd. My hubby is a biker and this guy looked a lot like him, a big bearded tough looking guy. Not really the type that hangs out at WM helping shoppers.

I saw him again, alone and still pushing that empty cart. I told my hubby he was after me because my sweet husband farted in an aisle and left me with the evidence. I swear I can't take him anywhere!

reply to post by kosmicjack


I was implying that the suspect was either caught by law enforcement, or walked to the LPO's office on his own free will. I should of been more specific, my apologies.

As for resisting a merchant without violence check out the link.

www.flsenate.gov...
It explains it in sub section 6.

This thread makes me want to go to Walmart and walk around till people follow me.

introV
This thread makes me want to go to Walmart and walk around till people follow me.

Same here. Like I said earlier, I sometimes walk with a friend for exercise inside the box stores when the weather is bad, and now WalMart will surely become the next destination. Would be a hoot to have three or four people spaced out, and then do a 20 to 30 minute fast-walk up and down the aisles (I'm very careful of people on those walks), from the front to the back of the store, into the next aisle, all the way across. Must drive those LP people nuts when people do that.

Interesting you mentioned this topic, I was talking to a friend of mine the other day who works at a Walmart and he was telling me that they keep files on people and if the person steals and continues to steal (even if its a small item 5$) once its passed the felony theft mark they grab em and slam em. So not to waste time with misdemeanor. and 9/10 the offenders have priors so its an easy sentencing.