"Take this Receipt and....."
· Sep 7, 12:59 PM
In case you haven’t heard, this guy refused to show a receipt at a Circuit City, and in the end got arrested.
Here’s what happened (in his words):
As I headed towards the exit doors I passed a gentleman whose name I would later learn is Santura. As I began to walk towards the doors Santura said, “Sir, I need to examine your receipt.” I responded by continuing to walk past him while saying, “No thank you.”
As I walked through the double doors I heard Santura yelling for his manager behind me. […] Santura and his manager, whose name I have since learned is Joe Atha, came running up to the vehicle. I closed the door and as my father was just about to pull away the manager, Joe, yelled for us to stop.
I reopened the door to talk with Joe and at this point Joe positioned his body between the open car door and myself. (I was still seated in the Buick.) Joe placed his left hand on the roof of the car and his right hand on the open car door.
I twice asked Joe to back away from the car so that I could close the door. Joe refused. On three occasions I tried to pull the door closed but Joe pushed back on the door with his hip and hands. I then gave Joe three options: 1. “Accuse me of shoplifting and call the police. I will gladly wait for them to arrive.” 2. “Back away from the car so that I can close the door and drive away.” 3. “If you refuse to let me leave I will be forced to call the police.”Joe didn’t budge. At this point I pushed my way past Joe and walked onto the sidewalk next to the building. I pulled out my phone and dialed 911.
Two minutes later Brooklyn, Ohio police officer Ernie Arroyo arrived on the scene. […] Officer Arroyo asked to see my receipt and driver’s license. I handed over the receipt, and stated that my name is Michael Righi. Again, Officer Arroyo asked to see my driver’s license. The conversation went something like this:
Me: “I’m required by law to state that my name is Michael Righi, but I do not have to provide you with my driver’s license since I am not operating a vehicle.” Officer Arroyo: “Give me your driver’s license or I will place you under arrest.” Me: “My name is Michael Righi. I am not willing to provide you with my driver’s license.” Officer Arroyo: “Turn around and up against the wall.”
Yes, he was arrested for refusing to provide a driver’s license, even though he wasn’t driving—he was standing on a sidewalk.
This incident is really two issues rolled into one.
The first, why do stores treat every customer as if they are a criminal? It’s really bad customer service. It’s a lose-lose situation for the customer. Why? If you show your receipt, you are submitting to an illegal search—you’re giving up your rights to privacy. If you refuse to submit to these searches, you are looked at as a troublemaker and potential criminal.
The second issue this incident raises is one of abuse of authority. In this modern age, all a policeman needs to look up your information in his system is your name, address and birthday. If you are driving a car, I understand being asked to show your license. If you are fishing, I understand being asked to show your license. But, being arrested for not showing your papers when you were neither driving or fishing, and just standing on a sidewalk is just wrong!
Welcome to the United Socialist States of America, comrades.
I dont’ know about you, but from now on, Wal-mart and all those other idiots can Kiss my….receipt.
Via Steven Perez
Labels: fascists, justice, legal, life, rants, unjust