Q: Falsely accused of shoplifting a bag of chips in New York City (details below)
I walked into a grocery store with a half eaten bag of chips I bought from a drug store (worth literally $1.50) and walked around a bit since I was only grabbing a few things and did not want to get my chip fingers over what I was going to buy.
I threw away my bag of chips and took a napkin to wipe my fingers off and then a guy came over and yelled at me "did you pay for that" and I was confused at first because I had just thrown away a napkin and he went through the trash and pulled out the bag of chips. I told him I bought it from a drug store and then he walked away so I continued shopping. I have a receipt from the drug store but did not show it to him.
When I got to the register the cashier started saying something to me that I couldn't understand so I'm not sure if it was related to this but ofc I was a bit shaken up.
I shop at this store frequently.
Any action for me to take now?
A: Although your question is posted under "Criminal Law," it appears that no criminal action was taken, and that instead, you are wondering about your rights in terms of civil action related to your treatment at the store??? If that's the case, you could reach out to attorneys to discuss. Based on the facts, there doesn't seem to be anything along the lines of outrageous conduct on the store's part that would give rise to a cause of action based on intentional infliction of emotional distress, if that's what you are thinking about. You could see what other attorneys say - different attorneys could sometimes see the same matter differently. Good luck
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