[Rumor]

A man was charged with petty theft after being caught on a surveillance camera taking jelly beans out of a bin and eating them before he got to the cash register.

The 34-year-old Fort Walton Beach man was buying groceries at Albertson’s when he stopped at a bin of candy and put an unspecified number of jelly beans in his mouth, according to an Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office report.

The deputy, who was working an off-duty detail, confronted the suspect after he had paid for the rest of his groceries and asked him if the candy was good. “Yes,” the suspect replied, according to the report.

The deputy told a manager that the suspect had taken about 10 of the “raspberry-flavored” candies. The man denied taking more than two. He added that he’d been shopping at Albertson’s for 30 years and that he was just trying the candy to see if he wanted to buy it. The deputy “advised him that Albertson’s did not have free samples of candy and he should have known that if he had been shopping at Albertson’s for 30 years.”

The man didn't buy any of the candy.

The store manager on duty told the deputy that he wanted charges brought against the suspect, who was also issued a trespass warning.

The jelly beans were priced at $6.99 a pound. The deputy estimated that the 10 jellybeans would have had a value of about $2.

A store manager contacted Thursday confirmed that the store has a “zero tolerance” policy against shoplifting.

Northwest Florida Daily News

One: the Deputy is retarded. 10 jelly beans would cost less than a dollar.

Two: I'm willing to bet that if the guy went to the counter and said he need to pay for 10 jelly beans, they would have laughed at him.

Three: Jelly Beans?? A criminal record for eating a few jelly beans? How many times has someone walked into a store and ate a couple while walking around?

[peeb]

This is totally stupid.

[osiris]

I bet that guy was a terrorist.

[analogue SPRINKLES]

That's the price of "Freedom".

[IceEnclosure]

He may have been one of those guys that has his pants full of shiit all day long, even on his visits to Albertsons. No one wants them around.

Also, I've gone to the counter at Publix before with empty wrappers for whatever-product I ate whilst shopping.

"Can you throw this banana peel away for me?"

[mindwaves]

Stupid as usual. I'm not sure if it is typical to eat some candy out of a jar or bin to see if it is worth buying, but it is quite common here to taste a grape or two to see if they are juicy before buying. In either case, no crimes should be brought to that guy. It wasn't as if he went to the store JUST to taste the candy. He purchased other groceries also.

[peeb]

d post

[peeb]

Originally Posted by osiris 

I bet that guy was a terrorist.

Who, the cop, or the storekeep?

[starman]

Originally Posted by osiris 

I bet that guy was a terrorist.

I lawled

[starman]

Originally Posted by analogue SPRINKLES 

That's the price of "Freedom".

What's the "free jelly bean limit" in Canada?

[osiris]

Originally Posted by peeb 

Who, the cop, or the storekeep?

The newsreporter.

[peeb]

It's like there is a complete drought in the common sense department.

[Chuckit]

The store manager should have told the deputy to get bent. That would have been awesome customer service.

[analogue SPRINKLES]

Originally Posted by starman 

What's the "free jelly bean limit" in Canada?

We got none

[peeb]

I had a bit of a similar experience in a store last year - I bought some groceries, and left the store, was walking away down the street, and a store employee ran after me, asking to see my receipt. I showed him the receipt, and volunteered the store bag to let him check the items - he did this, of course, they corresponded. He then asked me to come back to the store, and at that moment two cops turned up. I asked him why he wanted me to go back to the store, and he said he wanted to discuss it there. I said 'no', and the cops looked concerned, and whispered to each other, but did nothing. I told the store employee unless he had anything else to say I was leaving, and the cops did nothing as I walked away. I never went back to that store though.

[pinenuts]

Insanity Is Everywhere!

[TheWOAT]

Many stores prohibit employees from following "suspects" outside to the parking lot. Some stores are open in the wee hours of night, and are hit often for expensive meats and wines, but all they can do is ask them to stay, really they are not allowed to try to apprehend or even get license plate numbers. They do not want their employees getting hurt over food. At least that is how it is for a few large chains around here.

Nice to know our precious jelly bean supply is being monitored.

[Shaddim]

What a joke. I commonly grab a few pieces from the candy dispensers, those huge jelly bean canisters, when I shop for groceries. No one has ever said anything to me, and usually there's a store worker or manager who sees me.

Must be a Florida thing.

[starman]

Originally Posted by peeb 

I had a bit of a similar experience in a store last year - I bought some groceries, and left the store, was walking away down the street, and a store employee ran after me, asking to see my receipt. I showed him the receipt, and volunteered the store bag to let him check the items - he did this, of course, they corresponded. He then asked me to come back to the store, and at that moment two cops turned up. I asked him why he wanted me to go back to the store, and he said he wanted to discuss it there. I said 'no', and the cops looked concerned, and whispered to each other, but did nothing. I told the store employee unless he had anything else to say I was leaving, and the cops did nothing as I walked away. I never went back to that store though.

Huh. Strange. Did you check your receipt against what was in the bag?

Maybe you had Canadian jelly beans.

[peeb]

Originally Posted by starman 

Huh. Strange. Did you check your receipt against what was in the bag?

Maybe you had Canadian jelly beans.

Yes, the receipt was correct for what was in the bag - I think he thought I had something else in my jacket or something. Maybe it was Candian jelly beans...

[turtle777]

Originally Posted by analogue SPRINKLES 

We got none

Darn communists

-t

[nonhuman]

Originally Posted by peeb 

It's like there is a complete drought in the common sense department.

Global warming is the cause of this drought. We need to drastically cut back our CO2 emissions immediately!

[Gankdawg]

Why do most people in this thread so far think it's OK to take something that's not yours? Why does it matter if it's jellybeans? Why does it matter if it's just one or two?

What's stupid is that people think that this behavior is OK.

[peeb]

Well, it's up to the store whether that's ok, but the reaction seems completely disproportionate. Charge the guy an extra dollar, or put up a big sign saying 'dont eat the jellybeans' or something.

[brassplayersrock²]

this is stupid. to get charged for a few jellybeans??? what kind of cop is that jerk?

[scaught]

The cop must have been REALLY bored. Why do paperwork for something like that?

[besson3c]

besson3c is eating jellybeans as we speak...

[Demonhood]

i thought this story was going to end with:

"The deputy told a manager that the suspect had taken about 10 of the “buttered popcorn flavored” candies. The manager, claiming that eating that flavor was punishment enough, declined to press charges.”

[phantomdragonz]

I work in a grocery store, and I end up apprehending shoplifters when I see them... it's a pain for us to get someone arrested because we are so busy, but we had this one lady come in that has already been arrested 3!! times before, we sat her ass down and called the cops... she will be back, and when I see her I will kick her out... she has gotten a little violent in the past, mostly pushing stuff off the shelf and onto the floor. damn drunk homeless crazy people... I would much rather deal with a sane angry person then a crazy one... at least I have a chance to make the sane person happy again!!!

it's my least favorite part of the job... dealing with crazy people!

Zach

[Rumor]

Originally Posted by phantomdragonz 

I work in a grocery store, and I end up apprehending shoplifters when I see them... it's a pain for us to get someone arrested because we are so busy, but we had this one lady come in that has already been arrested 3!! times before, we sat her ass down and called the cops... she will be back, and when I see her I will kick her out... she has gotten a little violent in the past, mostly pushing stuff off the shelf and onto the floor. damn drunk homeless crazy people... I would much rather deal with a sane angry person then a crazy one... at least I have a chance to make the sane person happy again!!!

it's my least favorite part of the job... dealing with crazy people!

Zach

You need a light up yo-yo, that'll distract the craziers.

[CheesePuff]

Originally Posted by phantomdragonz 

I work in a grocery store, and I end up apprehending shoplifters when I see them... it's a pain for us to get someone arrested because we are so busy, but we had this one lady come in that has already been arrested 3!! times before, we sat her ass down and called the cops... she will be back, and when I see her I will kick her out... she has gotten a little violent in the past, mostly pushing stuff off the shelf and onto the floor. damn drunk homeless crazy people... I would much rather deal with a sane angry person then a crazy one... at least I have a chance to make the sane person happy again!!!

it's my least favorite part of the job... dealing with crazy people!

Zach

If I were her I'd push you off me and laugh as I walked away for trying to "detain" me.

[besson3c]

Maybe you should ask her to have sex with you?

[ort888]

Can I get a price check on 2 grapes, yeah that's right, I need a price check on 2 meeeasly stinkin' graapes...

[phantomdragonz]

Originally Posted by CheesePuff 

If I were her I'd push you off me and laugh as I walked away for trying to "detain" me.

that would probably work, I cant forcefully detain people... not that i would want to touch her!

the sad thing is when we were waiting for the cops she said she had been raped that morning, when the cops showed up I was happy they showed significant concern over that, but were still doing a great job of arresting her and getting her out of the store... it's sad really. but if you are truly hungry get sober and go to the homeless shelter.

Zach

[phantomdragonz]

Originally Posted by ort888 

Can I get a price check on 2 grapes, yeah that's right, I need a price check on 2 meeeasly stinkin' graapes...

at my store anything that weighs .01 of a pound is impossible to ring up... I have to admit, it pisses me off to see people grazing out of the bulk bins...

I can imagine if the dude had been coming in the store for 30 years and always grabbed a handful of bulk stuff and did not buy much else I would (tactfully) tell him to stop, and if he continued I would kick him out... I would not arrest him though.

I will have to go shopping for a light up yo-yo, that might just work, flashing multi colored lights would calm them down!

Zach

[peeb]

Yeah, the thing is, if they buy something when they eat two grapes, the store is probably still doing pretty well out of them. WholeFoods etc have figured this out!

[d4nth3m4n]

supermarkets work on a 1% margin. grazing cuts into that and makes everything else in the store more expensive. if more people figured that out, and if the stores made it easier to be able to graze legitimately in the store, we'd be a lot better off.

[iMOTOR]

Stealing is stealing.
You guys need an economics lesson.
I would guess the average bin holds about a thousand beans. And I would guess about a hundred people walk past the candy bins on any given day. So, if every person took only ten beans from the bin without paying, very quickly the grocery store would lose both the wholesale value and the potential profit of the entire bin of beans.

If a grocery store gives you a sample, it means they want you to try a new product, when there is a price tag in front of the product it means they want you to pay for it, even if you just want a little bit.

When you take product without paying for it, the store must sell several times what you stole to break even, and once they break even, they have lost the potential profit they would have made had product not been stolen in the first place.

Each product has has a wholesale cost and is sold at a higher price in order to make a profit. The profit is used to pay lease, utilities, insurance, and payroll. The store must still pay lease and utilities even when they lose profit. So to make up for lost profit, the store must cut back hours for their employees.

None of you guys would think it was cool to reach into the stock boys pocket and pull out his change, even if it was only ten cents, would you?

[Shaddim]

Originally Posted by d4nth3m4n 

supermarkets work on a 1% margin. grazing cuts into that and makes everything else in the store more expensive. if more people figured that out, and if the stores made it easier to be able to graze legitimately in the store, we'd be a lot better off.

Not where I shop. In fact, they encourage a degree of "grazing".

The Fresh Market

I know they make more than 1%, a lot more. But then, I have no problems paying more for better cuts of meat and premium produce. Plus, the bakery is to die for.

[CharlesS]

Originally Posted by Demonhood 

i thought this story was going to end with:

"The deputy told a manager that the suspect had taken about 10 of the “buttered popcorn flavored” candies. The manager, claiming that eating that flavor was punishment enough, declined to press charges.”

Dude, that's the most popular flavor.

Or it was, at least. Now it's #2. (Fun)

[hayesk]

Finally, the voice of reason. Stealing is stealing.

If you think 10 jelly beans is ok, then what isn't? 100? 50? If 50 is too much to steal, how about 49? Come on - i'ts only one more, right?

[Shaddim]

Originally Posted by hayesk 

Finally, the voice of reason. Stealing is stealing.

If you think 10 jelly beans is ok, then what isn't? 100? 50? If 50 is too much to steal, how about 49? Come on - i'ts only one more, right?

I refuse to shop at a store that is so anal that I can't try a few jelly beans, cashews, or grapes.

[iMOTOR]

Originally Posted by Shaddim 

I refuse to shop at a store that is so anal that I can't try a few jelly beans, cashews, or grapes.

Next time you're at the market, you should ask the manager:

"Hey, is it okay if I help myself to a little bit of free product when I come in?"

If the manager is cool with it, then more power to ya.

[Shaddim]

Originally Posted by iMOTOR 

Next time you're at the market, you should ask the manager:

"Hey, is it okay if I help myself to a little bit of free product when I come in?"

If the manager is cool with it, then more power to ya.

Considering that I stand there munching it while I talk to the staff and managers, I don't think it's an issue.

[PB2K]

If I understand correctly he took the jellybeans from a bin and ate some. Confronted by the shop owner he said he ate some but didn't want to pay for it. It must have been an ongoing dispute so the owner called the cops. Yes it's stupid, it's stupid because the amount is so small but it's minor theft anyway. The man should have known better.

[Kevin]

Originally Posted by analogue SPRINKLES 

That's the price of "Freedom".

WTF does this have to do with anything SWG? I don't think you read the articles posted something. And if you did, well

[Kevin]

Originally Posted by Shaddim 

I refuse to shop at a store that is so anal that I can't try a few jelly beans, cashews, or grapes.

Now times that by x60-300 customers doing it and see how much product you have left.

[Shaddim]

Originally Posted by Kevin 

Now times that by x60-300 customers doing it and see how much product you have left.

Considering the profit that store makes, I'm sure they don't think twice about it.

I suppose they can always tell me to stop, right?

[Kevin]

Originally Posted by Shaddim 

Considering the profit that store makes, I'm sure they don't think twice about it.

What store are you referring to? You said ANY store. And not every store is a large chain supermarket. Not that it matters, Stealing is stealing. Taking something that doesn't belong to you, that you didn't pay for is a crime. You can try to justify it, and spin it all you like. But it still makes you a thief for doing such. I remember when I was a kid, and me and a friend went to the local hobby shop. The guy had a LONG row of matchbox cars. A friend of mine stole one without anyone knowing about it. After we got out of the store he showed me. I told him that he should bring it back and apologize. His spin? "He had like 20 cars just like this on the wall, he aint gonna miss it" But I expect that from KIDS

I suppose they can always tell me to stop, right?

I think the idea is, you should be telling yourself not to do it in the first place. I can see kids doing this. But as adults, we should KNOW better.

[ShortcutToMoncton]

Originally Posted by iMOTOR 

Stealing is stealing.
You guys need an economics lesson.

Your post is quite out of place and not really on topic, because I don't think people in here are saying he wasn't stealing – they're saying the response to that stealing could have been handled in a better way, such as, perhaps, privately giving the person a stern warning that munching on store food wasn't tolerated.

Similarly, if the police pressed charges every time some kid is caught stealing a candy bar from a store, it would be an utterly ridiculous world. Instead, they put the Fear of God™ into them and trust that's enough to show them the error of their ways.

greg