needshelpquick
New Member
Hello,
I am 20 years old with an otherwise clean record, but tonight a friend and I were caught being dumb and taking stuff from WalMart. We are both 20 years of age and are in Pennsylvania (western).
We were taken into the back room, police were not called, they took the basic information like driver's license, age, address, weight, if we had any former offenses, etc. He had us sign a few forms and so on.
The sum of the items that we had in possession was minimal and we had actually purchased other items that evening. She had a single item, which cost around $15 something and tax, and I had 5 smaller items, consisting of 1 foundation makeup, 2 candy bars and nail-design applications. Very small items, and maybe the total was $30 at the very most? Probably not even that much.
We were very cooperative with the people who took us back and gave them no hassle, though they did try to take some of my personal items that I had already had. I guess they thought that a few lipglosses I had didn't look used. I don't know, but I insisted that they were in fact mine that I had bought and paid for many months ago.
Also, he claimed to have seen me personally causing problems before but that he didn't decide to bust me because he just didn't. He claims that he has video footage of me doing so as well, but I find that incredibly doubtful, as there were no cameras around us when we did conceal the items. None at all. We know the layout of the place and there were NONE there. There were people in the areas around us who were unpacking holiday boxes and I recognized the one lady who took us back as the one who was in the same area as when we concealed a specific item. She saw nothing. This I can say for sure. No cameras could have seen us and none of them saw us doing it, as we were alone in an isle when it happened. I truly believe that they got us on pure suspicion because we were 2 young girls and I have a tendency to dress in a style that some people seem to find, I guess I'd say "trashy". Not "tramp-ish" or suggestive clothing, as I was fully covered, but hoodies and converse sneakers.
When the guy took us back he told us that he was going to contact the police (which he didn't do) and to empty out our bags, which we did because we didn't want to fight him or cause greater problems. Was he, legally, allowed to do that without a warrant?
I asked him many questions, as I've never been through a system like this before, nor has my friend, and I asked him about fines, if we'd be banned, when to expect subpoenas, etc. He said that it'd likely process within 2 weeks, there would be no ban, the cops were not called, and he said that no other parties would be contacted or made aware of what we had done.
Do you think this will appear in local newspapers? We made it clear that we want this to be strictly between us and him and he said that it would be, but can I trust his word? Will word get out to local law-firms and will we get tons of mail about hiring attorneys? Will the summons or subpoenas (whatever they are called) come in inconspicuous envelopes?
What should I expect from this process? What will happen? Would I need a lawyer (the one that they provide)? Do they provide a lawyer?
He said that we'd have to get fingerprinted and that he'd see us in court. What might happen? I have no prior experience in this field, as I am not a trouble maker and I don't get into trouble. Ever.
Help ASAP please!
I am 20 years old with an otherwise clean record, but tonight a friend and I were caught being dumb and taking stuff from WalMart. We are both 20 years of age and are in Pennsylvania (western).
We were taken into the back room, police were not called, they took the basic information like driver's license, age, address, weight, if we had any former offenses, etc. He had us sign a few forms and so on.
The sum of the items that we had in possession was minimal and we had actually purchased other items that evening. She had a single item, which cost around $15 something and tax, and I had 5 smaller items, consisting of 1 foundation makeup, 2 candy bars and nail-design applications. Very small items, and maybe the total was $30 at the very most? Probably not even that much.
We were very cooperative with the people who took us back and gave them no hassle, though they did try to take some of my personal items that I had already had. I guess they thought that a few lipglosses I had didn't look used. I don't know, but I insisted that they were in fact mine that I had bought and paid for many months ago.
Also, he claimed to have seen me personally causing problems before but that he didn't decide to bust me because he just didn't. He claims that he has video footage of me doing so as well, but I find that incredibly doubtful, as there were no cameras around us when we did conceal the items. None at all. We know the layout of the place and there were NONE there. There were people in the areas around us who were unpacking holiday boxes and I recognized the one lady who took us back as the one who was in the same area as when we concealed a specific item. She saw nothing. This I can say for sure. No cameras could have seen us and none of them saw us doing it, as we were alone in an isle when it happened. I truly believe that they got us on pure suspicion because we were 2 young girls and I have a tendency to dress in a style that some people seem to find, I guess I'd say "trashy". Not "tramp-ish" or suggestive clothing, as I was fully covered, but hoodies and converse sneakers.
When the guy took us back he told us that he was going to contact the police (which he didn't do) and to empty out our bags, which we did because we didn't want to fight him or cause greater problems. Was he, legally, allowed to do that without a warrant?
I asked him many questions, as I've never been through a system like this before, nor has my friend, and I asked him about fines, if we'd be banned, when to expect subpoenas, etc. He said that it'd likely process within 2 weeks, there would be no ban, the cops were not called, and he said that no other parties would be contacted or made aware of what we had done.
Do you think this will appear in local newspapers? We made it clear that we want this to be strictly between us and him and he said that it would be, but can I trust his word? Will word get out to local law-firms and will we get tons of mail about hiring attorneys? Will the summons or subpoenas (whatever they are called) come in inconspicuous envelopes?
What should I expect from this process? What will happen? Would I need a lawyer (the one that they provide)? Do they provide a lawyer?
He said that we'd have to get fingerprinted and that he'd see us in court. What might happen? I have no prior experience in this field, as I am not a trouble maker and I don't get into trouble. Ever.
Help ASAP please!
