defamation and slander

[turnerspub]

wife accused of shoplifting twice in cvs pharmacy. entered local cvs that we have shopped in for 13 years. cashier stopped wife and daughter in front of 7 customers in line and said she had to leave store as she was caught stealing brush and mirror as seen on videotape few days prior. customers in line were neighbors and customers that visit our tavern business one block away. wife tryed to discuss with manager to no avail. next day i talked with manager and she indicated wife could continue to shop there. few weeks later wife walked in cvs and same clerk told her to leave store as she was thief. my wife needed female items and decided to shop anyway as she knew she was innocent. she told clerk if you can prove if i was shoplifter then arrest me and continued to shop out of neccessity. the local police came in the store and closely followed my wife as she tryed to shop. she was to intimindated to purchase the female items she needed in front of male police officer and purchased hair product and left. she was very afraid he was going to arrest her as left. we live one block away so i went to discuss this with police officer and he told me that he felt it was his duty to closely watch my wife as the store mananger told him she was a thief. i faxed angry letter to cvs corps top legal officer and was called the next day by baltimores district manager. he told me there was no videotape or any proof that she was a shoplifterand appologized . he also fired a few employees that were involved in this embarrassing mistaken identity

 

[presutin]

so what is your legal issue here?

 

[CdwJava]

I seriously doubt that anyone was fired based upon a sole complaint of a mistaken allegation. Possible? I suppose, just not likely.

And I find it VERY odd that a police officer would waste his time following your wife around the store ... I suspect it was a security officer. The police are not there to follow people around. if the store called and said they had someone in the store refusing to leave after having been told to leave, they would have told her to leave or arrested her for trespassing. Period. the police are NOT going to follow someone around the store unless this is the slowest town in the United States, and the officers have nothing at all to do, and an immense amount of patience. I'd go ballistic if my officers wasted their time following a suspected shoplifter through a store for no reason other than someone thought she might have stolen in the past.

But, if you think it has all been handled, why are you here? What are you asking?

- Carl

 

[dee_dub]

Forget the Criminal law thread. There's no criminal issue in this situation.

Frankly I'm mystified you think there's a civil issue either. What is your wife hoping to obtain? The employee's actions weren't malicious. The store admitted their error and presumably will be happy to apologize. And your wife suffered minimal public embarrassment. What damages did she suffer worth pursuing?

My two cents: no attorney you'd want representing you would touch this. In fact, if I was your wife, I'd write a letter to CVS asking them to reinstate the employees who accused your wife, because firing them is a grossly exaggerated response to what was in all probability an honest mistake. Get a letter or a public apology from CVS so your clientele will know she's not a shoplifter, and move on.

 

[turnerspub]

have you ever been accused of being a thief and been told to leave a store that you have been shopping in for 13 years. this clerk was loud and abusive and made these statements in front of 7 of our neighbors. the store manager told the local police my wife was a thief and on the second occasion of her entering the store after the manager said it was ok for her to shop there, the local cop followed her to the tampon aisle. he was so close to her she asked him if he approved of the hair dye she was purchasing. some of the cvs employees that were told my wife was a thief are customers in our bar. the store violated all of cvs's loss prevention policies. minimum training should have told this rude cashier you do publically humiliate a person when you have no idea of the truth.

 

[CdwJava]

Okay. So, you got people fired and an apology. What more do you want?

If you think there is enough for a lawsuit and can show how she was damaged by this, then consult an attorney ... of course, know that CVS has attorneys on retainer and you'll have to pay for yours out of pocket, so you better be able to articulate some serious damages.

No one is saying that it is proper to impugn someone in public and accuse them of stealing if they did not do it, but it would appear you already have received your payback and apology. What now?

- Carl