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I made a citizens arrest at a hobby shop in Rochester NH.

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  • From: Ctr. Ossipee NH
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I made a citizens arrest at a hobby shop in Rochester NH.
Posted by Red Horse on Friday, July 18, 2008 12:56 AM

While visiting a hobby shop I watched as a teen ager was filling his book bag with all kinds of stuff, he was trying to impress his 2 looser buddies, well I was in the place with my Emt partner Bob (we were spending a day off together) I had enough of this Jack *** so when he went to exit the store with his book bag stuffed with the stolen goods, my partner and I grabbed him (I spent many years earning a living as a loss prevention officer) and boy was that punk surprised, his two buddies left him and ran off, neither of them were seen taking anything.

The crook had $83.00 worth of stolen goods when it was added up by the police.

I held the kid for police, wrote up a shoplifting report that the store had and off in cuffs he went, the stores owner tried to give us both a $50.00 gift certificate which we both turned down, after all we were trying to save the store owner money and not cost her, besides, she sure was pretty....well, she was.

So now when the kid gets a court date we will have to go and testify, so what, it was worth it, and I'd do it again.

That was my excitement yesterday.

Please visit my Photobucket pics page. http://photobucket.com/Jesse_Red_Horse_Layout I am the King of my Layout, I can build or destroy the entire city on a whim or I can create a whole new city from scratch , it is good too be the King.
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Posted by Teditor on Friday, July 18, 2008 1:28 AM

Good on ya mate!

Not expecting/taking a reward is also very honourable, hopefully it will teach him some sort of lesson, but I doubt it.

Happy modelling.

Teditor. 

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Posted by Rotorranch on Friday, July 18, 2008 1:32 AM

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Pilfering is a big hit to small business owners...I should know, as I was one, and it can turn into pretty substantial losses. We ended each year with a couple grand worth of missing merchandise.

Hopefully the kid learned his lesson.

Good for you, Jess!

BTW...got pics of the owner? Whistling [:-^]

Rotor

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Posted by markpierce on Friday, July 18, 2008 2:01 AM

Good deed, Red Horse.  We all need to look out for each other.

Mark

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Posted by Lillen on Friday, July 18, 2008 4:38 AM

Good work Jess. The world needs people who are willing to step up and say something.

 

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Posted by Railphotog on Friday, July 18, 2008 5:08 AM

Way to go!  Thank you!

 

 

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Posted by CSXDixieLine on Friday, July 18, 2008 7:00 AM
Very cool...thanks so much for doing something instead of just watching! You really did a huge service to the hobby shop and even more so by not accepting the gift certificates. I think a significant amount of crime occurs just because the perps are counting on nobody doing anything even if they are witnessed in the act. Jamie
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Posted by Randall_Roberts on Friday, July 18, 2008 7:53 AM
Well done.  The world needs more people willing to stand up to criminals if we ever expect crime to diminish.
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Posted by Heartland Division CB&Q on Friday, July 18, 2008 8:22 AM
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GARRY

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Posted by jwhitten on Friday, July 18, 2008 8:26 AM

 

So what you're sayin is that the punk'll be takin the 0-5-0 to the bone yard..? 

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Posted by lvanhen on Friday, July 18, 2008 8:33 AM
GOOD JOB JESS - WE NEED MORE LIKE YOU!!Cool [8D]
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Posted by loathar on Friday, July 18, 2008 8:43 AM

Way to go Jesse!!

I recently yelled at a couple of illegals that were stuffing pairs of jeans under their coats. (in 90 degree weather!Dunce [D)]) They dropped the stuff and left the store rather quickly.

I HATE thieves!!!Angry [:(!]

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Posted by jeffrey-wimberly on Friday, July 18, 2008 8:43 AM
Way to go Jess. Many times getting nailed at a young age will make them think several times before trying it again. Voice of experience.

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Posted by Packers#1 on Friday, July 18, 2008 10:03 AM
Great work, Jesse. Good thing you caught that kid, he'd probably have just dumped the stuff later.

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Posted by G Paine on Friday, July 18, 2008 10:12 AM

Or tried to sell it for drug money. As for testifying, probably they will do a juvinal court plea bargin and it will never see the inside of the court room.

Good you stepped up, Jesse. $85 is a big hit for a small business like a hobby shop.

George In Midcoast Maine, 'bout halfway up the Rockland branch 

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Posted by topcopdoc on Friday, July 18, 2008 10:25 AM

Be careful my friend, I received permenant injuries to my neck doing the same thing. The suspect was a juvenile and it took myself and 3 other men to finally subdue him.

In addition the suspect signed counter complaints against me for assault. Then his mother filed a civil suit against me.

When all was settled he was found guilty and the civil suit was dismissed. He got a slap on the wrist and I am typing this with a pain in my neck which has been there since 1983.

Doc

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Posted by Heartland Division CB&Q on Friday, July 18, 2008 10:29 AM

WOW. We all need to take martial arts classes before shopping at the LHS!

Seriously, Doc, I am sorry to learn about your neck injury and the legal problems back then. Best regards to you, Doc. 

 

GARRY

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Posted by Anonymous on Friday, July 18, 2008 10:30 AM
Good job....I know quite a few people who would do that....i would do somethin I don't have the authority to do.
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Posted by Mntneer on Friday, July 18, 2008 10:41 AM
 topcopdoc wrote:

Be careful my friend, I received permenant injuries to my neck doing the same thing. The suspect was a juvenile and it took myself and 3 other men to finally subdue him.

In addition the suspect signed counter complaints against me for assault. Then his mother filed a civil suit against me.

When all was settled he was found guilty and the civil suit was dismissed. He got a slap on the wrist and I am typing this with a pain in my neck which has been there since 1983.

Doc

I can see whee you have to be careful in such situations when it comes to injury and lawsuits.

When I was in college my girlfriend and I were walking up the sidewalk into a grocrery store when we saw a guy in a thick coat being chased out of the store by an employee.  The Employee was yelling for him to stop, so I assumed he had stolen something.  Since he was running down the sidewalk towards me,  I reared up and threw my shoulder into him, throwing him up against, and pinning him to, a brick pillar.  He started to struggle to get away but the store employee ran up to grab him. Once the employee had him I just walked on into the store and finished my shopping.  Never heard from the store, never heard what happened beyond that.

Fortunately I didn't hurt myself, nor have to face any legal issues from it. 

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Posted by jeffrey-wimberly on Friday, July 18, 2008 10:44 AM

For those thinking about going out and nabbing a shoplifter, consider the following.

In the state of California, and in most cases the rest of the United States and other countries, store employees and managers have certain powers of arrest. Store officials may detain for investigation (for a reasonable length of time), the person whom they have probable cause to believe is attempting to take or has unlawfully taken merchandise.

Generally, in the United States, the store employees who detain suspects outside of and inside the store premises are allowed by state statute limited powers of arrest and have the power to initiate criminal arrests or civil sanctions or both, depending on the policy of the retailer and the state statutes governing civil demands and recovery for shoplifting. Merchants may conduct a limited search to recover the item by those authorized to make the detention. Only packages, shopping bags, handbags or other property in the immediate possession of the person detained may be searched, but not any clothing worn by the person because this would require a search warrant under the law. Licensed security guards in the United States can, under the law, ask suspects to voluntarily empty their purses, pockets, wallets, handbags, etc. and most first offenders and amateur shoplifters generally agree to do this when suggested.

An accused shoplifter has rights that protects him or her from being falsely detained. The accused is subject to many of the same rights as would be present in an arrest from sworn law enforcement, such as the right to remain silent.

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Posted by PA&ERR on Friday, July 18, 2008 11:45 AM

Chalk up another one for the Good Guys!

Bow [bow]

George

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Posted by topcopdoc on Friday, July 18, 2008 12:02 PM

Each state has its own set of laws on shoplifting.

Most have immunity for the police or store employees if for example the suspect is able to ditch the stolen item before he is stopped and searched.

 A private citizen can make an arrest or hold a suspect legally if he witnessed the theft or concealment of the stolen item but if the stolen item is not found on the suspect when apprehended there is no immunity granted to the private citizen from being sued.

Doc

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Posted by grayfox1119 on Friday, July 18, 2008 12:24 PM

Way to go Jess!!!!  It is sad that this lad doesn't have a good role model, hopefully he will learn something from this experience.

Shop lifting costs all of us over $6B a year in this country, and that is BILLION with a "B" !! And that cost is added into the retail price of everything we purchase, so people who don't think this effects them individually, I have news for you, you are living on Fantasy Island.

Dick If you do what you always did, you'll get what you always got!! Learn from the mistakes of others, trust me........you can't live long enough to make all the mistakes yourself, I tried !! Picture album at :http://www.railimages.com/gallery/dickjubinville Picture album at:http://community.webshots.com/user/dickj19 local weather www.weatherlink.com/user/grayfox1119
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Posted by Kenfolk on Friday, July 18, 2008 12:29 PM

Way to go!

When I pointed out a shoplifter to wallyworld the store employee acted like she could care less and wanted to ignore it. I insisted it made prices higher for the rest of us. She called the person back to the checkout, removed the pilfered items, then let the person go merrily on her way. Duh.

No wonder so many are inclined to try  it.

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Posted by PA&ERR on Friday, July 18, 2008 12:45 PM
 topcopdoc wrote:

Each state has its own set of laws on shoplifting.

Most have immunity for the police or store employees if for example the suspect is able to ditch the stolen item before he is stopped and searched.

 A private citizen can make an arrest or hold a suspect legally if he witnessed the theft or concealment of the stolen item but if the stolen item is not found on the suspect when apprehended there is no immunity granted to the private citizen from being sued.

Doc

Just the legal system's way of protecting criminals while at the same time providing employment security for lawyers!

"...that no act of kindness goes unpunished..."

-George

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Posted by Packers#1 on Friday, July 18, 2008 1:01 PM
 topcopdoc wrote:

Be careful my friend, I received permenant injuries to my neck doing the same thing. The suspect was a juvenile and it took myself and 3 other men to finally subdue him.

In addition the suspect signed counter complaints against me for assault. Then his mother filed a civil suit against me.

When all was settled he was found guilty and the civil suit was dismissed. He got a slap on the wrist and I am typing this with a pain in my neck which has been there since 1983.

Doc

Doc, that's messed up, no other way to put it. They sued YOU?! Man, somethings wrong in that.

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Posted by HarryHotspur on Friday, July 18, 2008 3:16 PM
Attaboy Chief!

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Posted by Milepost 266.2 on Friday, July 18, 2008 3:16 PM
 Kenfolk wrote:

Way to go!

When I pointed out a shoplifter to wallyworld the store employee acted like she could care less and wanted to ignore it. I insisted it made prices higher for the rest of us. She called the person back to the checkout, removed the pilfered items, then let the person go merrily on her way. Duh.

No wonder so many are inclined to try  it.

I think Wal Mart has a policy not to prosecute shoplifters under a certaind dollar amount, because the lost time in wages far outweighs the cost of the merchandise.  They just take the stuff back and throw the bum out of the store. 

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Posted by tstage on Friday, July 18, 2008 4:35 PM

Jess,

You never know what eventual impact your intercession may have on this young man, or his two comrades.  In a slightly different (and less dramatic) scenario, I got "busted" by a high school English teacher 30+ years go for plagiarizing a class assignment.

My teacher called me into her room after class one day, looked me straight in the eye, and asked me if there was anything I needed to tell her about the assignment that I had previously handed in the day before.  I told her "No".  I was then asked to sit at my desk until "something came to mind".  Well, after what seemed like an eternity of silence "thinking it over" (probably about 5 minutes of actual elapsed time), I finally fessed up to the crime.

In reality, that had actually been my 2nd plagiarized assignment in that particular English class within a 2 week span.  I didn't caught - or at least confronted - the 1st time I cheated.  But I sure did the 2nd time.  And I applaud the fortitude of my English teacher for confronting me, and for the methodology she used to handle the situation.

Needless to say, I learned a very valuable and timely lesson that day on honesty; one that I obviously have not forgotten.  And I can honestly say that I have never plagiarized anything from that day forth.

Jess, thanks for stepping in and getting involved in a situation that some of us might have been tempted to just "look the other way" at.  That young man may actually someday look back on this unpleasant situation in his life and be thankful that it turned out the way it did.

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Tom

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Posted by Tjsingle on Friday, July 18, 2008 7:33 PM

The parents must be proud...

Still Great Job

Tjsingle

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