What is the name of your state?
California, Santa Clara County
I'm posting here because I want to get some advice on what I should do from this point forward. Here is the event so far:
Last Night, around 11PM:
My brother went to Safeway with two of his friends to get some food. My brother walked in, went to the canned food section because he wanted to get some ravioli or something, looked at a can and put it down, then went to the bathroom. Prior to this incident, Safeway employees had falsely accused him of stealing before so he was careful not to put his hands in his pockets or do anything that would make himself look suspicious. He came out of the bathroom and him and his friend were about to leave when the manager of the store came up to him and said "So are you going to tell me what you stole?" My brother was confused and asked him what he meant when the store manager started yelling at him. I think now is a good time to note that my brother is african-american and the store manager was caucasian. My brother was with his two caucasian friends at the time. One was outside and saw the incident and the other was next to him. So then the manager starts yelling at him and saying he's going to call the police and that he better tell him what he stole.
He was saying this all in front of customers, humiliating my brother and my brother hadn't even left the store nor did he have any items in his possession. After that my brother started getting mad and decided to stick up for himself since this has happened before and asked the store manager if he was the manager. He said yes. My brother then proceeded to ask the store manager for his name and number. The manager blew up. He started yelling at my brother again, asking if he was a lawyer or something and saying he better get out of there before he calls the police. He then scribbled his name on some crumbled up receipt paper. My brother's friend then asked "why did you stop only him and not me?" The manager said, very racistly, "Because blacks and mexicans have been stealing my alcohol" adding insult to injury. So, what? Is race a shoplift indicator now all of the sudden? My brother had shown no indicators of shoplifting. This was clearly based on race.
My brother didn't trust him (and rightly so) because of his behavior so he had him check his name with other employees to make sure he didn't give him a bogus name. My brother's friend then bought some eggs and left.
This afternoon:
My brother told my mom what happend and they went to the store immediately in the afternoon. My mom asked to speak with the manager and she told him everything. She then asked if she could call the police to file a report so she could have proof that this happened and a written statement. The manager wouldn't let her call. She then went to an employee and asked them to call the police when the manager came up to her and decided to let her call. The police came and listened to what happened and then gave my mom a yellow card which has an event number. He said he couldn't make it a criminal case until they finish the investigation.
This evening:
I've worked in Loss Prevention at Nordstrom Rack so I know about this kind of thing. My brother showed no shoplift indicators and he was singled out. He finally got tired of it and decided to stick up for himself when he was falsely accused. We went back this evening because I wanted to get the regional HR manager's phone number as well as the regional LP manager's phone number. We had to talk to the assistant manager and he took us to the back where they didn't have those numbers. I also asked for the store policy but he said I would have to get that from the HR manager of their store. He gave me her number and said they are looking into it. He kept implying that all the employees would get is some disciplinary action but this goes beyond a slap on the hand. My brother has been accused on other occasions by Safeway of stealing and last night he was completely humiliated in front of customers and friends and he hadn't even left the store[//i]. Aside from not having any items and being completely innocent, this stands out to me the most. It shows that the manager was singling him out because he was black.
Today the assistant manager was telling us how Safeway makes every employee go through strict training, and that the managers are trained even moreso. There's really no excuse.
My brother was falsely accused of stealing, humiliated in front of customers and friends, and treated poorly and insulted with racist comments.
I've been looking for advice online and so far people have told me to contact the bar association in my area. They also said I should take a report from the witnesses. I'm thinking of getting a signed report? Should I do that? If so, what should I include? Also, is there anything else I should know?
From my experience in Loss Prevention I know that Safeway is completely in the wrong. We're definitely taking legal action because of how they humiliated him and the fact that this wasn't the first time. Especially because of the manager's comments about blacks and mexicans stealing, which implies that they have been watching blacks and mexicans instead of following shoplifting guidelines which do not include race. That manager should be fired and my brother should be awarded damages/compensation so that Safeway knows they will have to suffer the consequences from their actions. A slap on the hand of employees will not do.
Thank you in advance,
California, Santa Clara County
I'm posting here because I want to get some advice on what I should do from this point forward. Here is the event so far:
Last Night, around 11PM:
My brother went to Safeway with two of his friends to get some food. My brother walked in, went to the canned food section because he wanted to get some ravioli or something, looked at a can and put it down, then went to the bathroom. Prior to this incident, Safeway employees had falsely accused him of stealing before so he was careful not to put his hands in his pockets or do anything that would make himself look suspicious. He came out of the bathroom and him and his friend were about to leave when the manager of the store came up to him and said "So are you going to tell me what you stole?" My brother was confused and asked him what he meant when the store manager started yelling at him. I think now is a good time to note that my brother is african-american and the store manager was caucasian. My brother was with his two caucasian friends at the time. One was outside and saw the incident and the other was next to him. So then the manager starts yelling at him and saying he's going to call the police and that he better tell him what he stole.
He was saying this all in front of customers, humiliating my brother and my brother hadn't even left the store nor did he have any items in his possession. After that my brother started getting mad and decided to stick up for himself since this has happened before and asked the store manager if he was the manager. He said yes. My brother then proceeded to ask the store manager for his name and number. The manager blew up. He started yelling at my brother again, asking if he was a lawyer or something and saying he better get out of there before he calls the police. He then scribbled his name on some crumbled up receipt paper. My brother's friend then asked "why did you stop only him and not me?" The manager said, very racistly, "Because blacks and mexicans have been stealing my alcohol" adding insult to injury. So, what? Is race a shoplift indicator now all of the sudden? My brother had shown no indicators of shoplifting. This was clearly based on race.
My brother didn't trust him (and rightly so) because of his behavior so he had him check his name with other employees to make sure he didn't give him a bogus name. My brother's friend then bought some eggs and left.
This afternoon:
My brother told my mom what happend and they went to the store immediately in the afternoon. My mom asked to speak with the manager and she told him everything. She then asked if she could call the police to file a report so she could have proof that this happened and a written statement. The manager wouldn't let her call. She then went to an employee and asked them to call the police when the manager came up to her and decided to let her call. The police came and listened to what happened and then gave my mom a yellow card which has an event number. He said he couldn't make it a criminal case until they finish the investigation.
This evening:
I've worked in Loss Prevention at Nordstrom Rack so I know about this kind of thing. My brother showed no shoplift indicators and he was singled out. He finally got tired of it and decided to stick up for himself when he was falsely accused. We went back this evening because I wanted to get the regional HR manager's phone number as well as the regional LP manager's phone number. We had to talk to the assistant manager and he took us to the back where they didn't have those numbers. I also asked for the store policy but he said I would have to get that from the HR manager of their store. He gave me her number and said they are looking into it. He kept implying that all the employees would get is some disciplinary action but this goes beyond a slap on the hand. My brother has been accused on other occasions by Safeway of stealing and last night he was completely humiliated in front of customers and friends and he hadn't even left the store[//i]. Aside from not having any items and being completely innocent, this stands out to me the most. It shows that the manager was singling him out because he was black.
Today the assistant manager was telling us how Safeway makes every employee go through strict training, and that the managers are trained even moreso. There's really no excuse.
My brother was falsely accused of stealing, humiliated in front of customers and friends, and treated poorly and insulted with racist comments.
I've been looking for advice online and so far people have told me to contact the bar association in my area. They also said I should take a report from the witnesses. I'm thinking of getting a signed report? Should I do that? If so, what should I include? Also, is there anything else I should know?
From my experience in Loss Prevention I know that Safeway is completely in the wrong. We're definitely taking legal action because of how they humiliated him and the fact that this wasn't the first time. Especially because of the manager's comments about blacks and mexicans stealing, which implies that they have been watching blacks and mexicans instead of following shoplifting guidelines which do not include race. That manager should be fired and my brother should be awarded damages/compensation so that Safeway knows they will have to suffer the consequences from their actions. A slap on the hand of employees will not do.
Thank you in advance,
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