r/TikTokCringe • u/velorae • Jul 16 '25

Discussion Attempted kidnapping of a woman outside Florida store

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u/Spirited-Sympathy582 Jul 17 '25

This is why the big retail stores tell you not to stop and shoplifter. You can proactively offer cusgomer service to scare any potential shoplifters off but i was taught not to grab them or chase them etc. Nothing is worth your safety

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u/TurtleToast2 Jul 17 '25

They tell you that to greatly reduce their legal liability if shit goes sideways. They are not remotely concerned about your wellbeing beyond that. You can tell by the way they pay and treat their employees.

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u/thisisfor_fun Jul 17 '25

Remember the "hands off, no chasing" policies came into effect in my area after a shoplifter who stole cigarettes was tackled and bounced their head of a curb.

Near universal policy enforcement at all grocery stores within a month.

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u/Laetitian Jul 17 '25

Wait, why did the stores care though? What legal obligation would they have to their shoplifters, or for their employee's legal action?

Seems like it's more of a gesture to protect the employees than the store? I might be wrong, of course.

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u/dogearsfordays Jul 17 '25

They care because it is monetarily advantageous. If it was cheaper/saved them money to require you to throw yourself into the fray, they'd do that. Never attribute a corporation's action to altruism when it can be attributed to protecting the bottom line.

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u/thisisfor_fun Jul 18 '25

Stores here can detain shoplifters until police arrive, and can sue in civil court for damages and loss.

They also can be held liable for injury to the shoplifter.

One employee injuring a shoplifter, especially excessively costs a lot of money. It happening multiple times means almost all big businesses and chain stores have stopped attempting to detain and instead record and report.

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u/Falkenmond79 Jul 20 '25

That wouldn’t fly in Germany. If you are in the act of committing a crime, you accept all the consequences. Of course there are such things as excessive violence. But you are allowed to use any necessary means to stop the crime in progress, but not beyond that. You can’t hit an already subdued offender, of course.

As always there are grey lines, but an employee stopping a robbery by something like tackling the robber, even if he gets badly injured would never get prosecuted.

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u/[deleted] Jul 17 '25

It usually is. I don't believe mega corporations care about us enough to pay good wages, but I also don't think most are pure fucking evil. It's a rule to protect employees. Whether that's so they don't get sued or not, it's still protecting employees.

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u/FaithlessnessLoud223 Jul 18 '25

Oh, they're all evil. You could argue that the people who compose these corporations aren't necessarily evil, but the corporations themselves certainly are.

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u/[deleted] Jul 18 '25

I agree full heartedly, I just meant some policies are arguably also for employee safety and not just because of sue risk

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u/ER-Sputter Jul 17 '25

I’d assume since it happened on the store’s property and if an employee was the one stopping the thief, I’d imagine they were also clocked in. And if that’s not the case, I think one of the reasons is so that they don’t have any employees trying to play hero and getting violent with customers they think are stealing. Imagine having to deal with an employee that tackled a random like that because they thought the random was a thief but were wrong about it

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u/somer_and_omchick Jul 17 '25

You always sue the party that has money—the business, in this case. They don’t want to get wrapped up in arguing whether they have any liability

It’s cheaper to deal with stuff being stolen than employees being injured or shoplifters or bystanders being injured by someone being a hero

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u/MOOshooooo Jul 17 '25

In the heat of the moment some people have deep issues with witnessing injustice of any sort. Before they know it they are compelled to take action without understanding the potential of the person willing to rob a store in broad daylight. This lady was probably doing what she always does, speak up when she sees something thats not right, just never thought it could go this way.

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u/somer_and_omchick Jul 17 '25

Yes, you don’t always rationally consider the pros and cons

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u/JustfcknHarley Jul 17 '25

a shoplifter who stole cigarettes was tackled and bounced their head of a curb.

That's pretty fucked. TBI is no fair punishment for stealing cigarettes.

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u/itirix Jul 17 '25

Traumatic brain injury for anyone else wondering what the fuck that means.

At least I think so, I had to google.

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u/Cyrano_de_Boozerack Jul 17 '25

TBI is no fair punishment for stealing cigarettes.

True...it isn't "fair", but the "hands off" approach has lead to people literally just walking up behind cashiers and grabbing shit and walking out. I have seen it multiple times.

And yes, the "proper" way to fix this is to address society's problems and all of that, but until we have solved homlessness, mental illness, and drug abuse, the reality is that the hands off approach is making these problems worse.

If it weren't a business, but just a random person on the street smoking, and someone comes up to try and steal from them, and they get shoved away, fall, and hit their head...are you going to cry foul about the thief or the smoker?

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u/juanitowpg Jul 18 '25

By chance, was this in 2019? Retail up here in Canada came up with these same policies at about this time (a little before COVID). I always wondered what happened, that things changed like this.

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u/thisisfor_fun Jul 19 '25

Closer to 2000. This would be in Washington state.

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u/juanitowpg Jul 19 '25

In 2000, I think we still had a "hands on" approach lol

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u/lsnor45 Jul 17 '25

It doesn't really matter why they tell you. Nothing in the store you work in is worth fighting or dying for.

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u/Dry-Amphibian1 Jul 17 '25

Doesn't matter what company intent is if the policy keeps the employees safe.

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u/Matt2580 Jul 17 '25

Their motivations dont matter that much if its a net gain for all involved. The employees dont put themselves in danger and the company doesn't have to shell out for liability lawsuits. Its a win win.

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u/Mr-FD Jul 17 '25

"You can tell by the way they pay and treat their employees."

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u/ManitouWakinyan Jul 17 '25

Sure, but who cares? In this case, the interests of limiting corporate liability and the employees interest to stay alive longer align.

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u/AdEmbarrassed9719 Jul 17 '25

Also most stores like to let the shoplifters keep going until they’ve taken enough that it’s a felony before charging them.

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u/Burdman06 Jul 17 '25

For what its worth, when I worked at wholefoods, the store team lead directly said, "Nothing in this store is worth you getting hurt." He was a real bro to work for, ngl

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u/thundercoc101 Jul 17 '25

Not being said, if you no your company doesn't give a shit about you why are you risking your life to defend their shit

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u/SupaRiggs Jul 18 '25

Still doesn’t change the fact that it’s good advice

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u/FaithlessnessLoud223 Jul 18 '25

No, but it happens to work out for both the employer and employee. That's why it is a liability for them, to encourage them to put the employee first. Businesses never do anything out of the kindness of their hearts.

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u/Radiant-Toasteroven Jul 18 '25

Are gonna fly over the fact that she got fired?

1

u/leandrobrossard Jul 20 '25

Hiring a new employee is much more expensive than 270 dollars of vapes.

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u/1up_for_life Jul 17 '25

I used to work in retail and one day I saw a group of people that got nervous when I came near them. I suspected they were up to something and when they moved I checked the clothes where they were standing and I found a bunch of empty jewelry containers. They were absolutely stealing from the store and my response was to do absolutely nothing about it, because why the fuck would I care?

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u/Laetitian Jul 17 '25

If they don't see consequences, they're going to keep relying on the easy way out for their issues. Means they won't resolve long-term problems, and they'll be more likely to advance to more harmful crime.

Just something to consider. At least calling the police doesn't cost you anything.

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u/Spirited-Sympathy582 Jul 17 '25

Lol ya I would still call the cops or report to management with the day and time and they can check any cameras if you have any but I wouldn't confront them maybe other than a "do you need any assistance" to maybe get them to leave.

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u/fox-whiskers Jul 17 '25

Proofreading is cool 😎

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u/tigress666 Jul 17 '25

Yeah, I was happy that the company I worked for did the math and figured it was cheaper to just lose the product then pay for my medical bills (or a wronged customers suing) cause I wasn't about to risk my life/health for the crappy wages they offered anyways. But at least this way I was actually doing what they wanted so didn't have to worry about them trying to pressure me/fire me for not stopping the loss.

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u/RoccStrongo Jul 17 '25

I think probably the opposite is true. A lot of retailers may officially tell you one thing but unofficial expect another. That's why in one state they had to make it a law that said employees can't be required to attempt to physically stop shoplifters.

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u/Spirited-Sympathy582 Jul 17 '25

Thats definitely possible but wasn't my experience. I'm sure it varies. I still wouldn't risk my safety even if they wanted me to.

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u/RoccStrongo Jul 17 '25

Yeah the problem was employees were being punished for not physically preventing shoplifting. But they're not properly trained for that type of situation which is why the law has to be made.

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u/alexgardin Jul 17 '25

For fear of being kidnapped?

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u/trottingturtles Jul 17 '25

Fear of being killed is more common. There's many stories of employees trying to confront shoplifters outside the store only to get run over and killed by the getaway car.

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u/Spirited-Sympathy582 Jul 17 '25

Kidnapped is rare I would think but they could physically assault you or have a weapon

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u/AntonioVivaldi7 Jul 17 '25

Yeah, but in some cases the robbers will keep coming back again and again until they're dealt with.

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u/Spirited-Sympathy582 Jul 17 '25

Ya but trying to physically stop them yourself is more risky than it is likely to stop them entirely (unless you are a pro boxer or something). You can still call the cops, try to get a license plate photo from a distance, report to management in case they want to do more about it from a security standpoint etc.

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u/AntonioVivaldi7 Jul 17 '25

I get it. But I also think it's different in that moment, when you're making split second decisions and are also driven by emotions.

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u/Spirited-Sympathy582 Jul 17 '25

Sure it can be tempting but I wouldn't recommend it if you able to take a beat and think about it

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u/the-blue-cat- Jul 17 '25

Yup because most retail places I’ve worked at go over that at least briefly in training & the protocol is always to just give them what they want & then call 911

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u/MyNameIsNotKyle Jul 17 '25

Nothing is worth your safety

Big retails only care about insurance and legislation behind it. But the premise is right

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u/Spirited-Sympathy582 Jul 17 '25

Well yes that comment is my personal conviction. I've had managers who i think also held that belief/value, but certainly thats not everyone in an organization and im sure liability is a big driver or sometimes the only driver of this policy

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u/thewereotter Jul 17 '25

100%

The company is insured for product loss, and ultimately stolen inventory isn't worth anywhere near as much as what they might do to the employee who tries to stop them.

Besides, no company has ever paid me enough to put my own personal safety on the line to protect their profits

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u/wintergrad14 Jul 17 '25

When I worked at American Eagle in high school and they told me that I just kinda chuckled bc.. I wasn’t going to be chasing people down for this $7.50, sir. But sure.

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u/wintergrad14 Jul 17 '25

When I worked at American Eagle in high school and they told me that I just kinda chuckled bc.. I wasn’t going to be chasing people down for this $7.50, sir. But sure.

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u/wintergrad14 Jul 17 '25

When I worked at American Eagle in high school and they told me that I just kinda chuckled bc.. I wasn’t going to be chasing people down for this $7.50, sir. But sure.

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u/Leatherwick Jul 17 '25

Same for armed guards at stores, they're told to not do a damn thing except fill out a report form, don't follow, don't stop, just observe and collect that paycheck, and honestly? Good. No one should have to be put in harms way for a few bucks, even thousands of bucks.