Walmart’s Out-of-Control Crime Problem Is Driving Police Crazy

[looney2ns]

Beech Grove store is mentioned.

https://www.bloomberg.com/features/2016-walmart-crime/

 

[eldirector]

I believe it. My wife won't set foot on the property.

 

[RevoWood123]

I won't go to Walmart anymore. For me it's the long lines trying to check out and never being able to find what I am looking for in a timely manner. I can be in and out of Target in less than 5 minutes, my average time spent in Walmart is easily double that in the check out line alone. I'd rather pay $.25 more for every item I buy than to deal with the headache of shopping there. The article hit the nail on the head, that they need more staff for their stores, not only would it help with the crime, more people would be willing to shop there.

 

[eldirector]

They need to NOT talk about their failed Health Dept. inspections while customers are standing at the meat counter. Just sayin'.

 

[RevoWood123]

They need to NOT talk about their failed Health Dept. inspections while customers are standing at the meat counter. Just sayin'.

Luckily I never buy groceries there, but I can imagine based off of the other conversations I have heard there between employees.

 

[Leadeye]

Must be different in the big cities, I don't think I've ever seen a police car in the parking lot of the ones locally.

Those would be Bedford and Jasper.

 

[BehindBlueI's]

If Wal-mart was a bar or hotel it would have been shut down as a nuisance business years ago.

Instead, he says, it offloads the job to the police at taxpayers’ expense. “It’s ridiculous—we are talking about the biggest retailer in the world,” says Rohloff. “I may have half my squad there for hours.”

Tax breaks to get them there, then a massively disproportionate use of public services.

 

[voidsherpa]

Is it really Wal-Mart's crime problem, or the criminals'...

 

[JTScribe]

The ones in Columbus aren't too bad, but I am very excited for the Kroger Marketplace opening.

 

[bobzilla]

Depends on where you go. Brownsburg and Lebanon are clean, easy to use etc. 86th and michigan is hoodlum-ville. I can tell you which of them we will go to after dark and which ones we won't.

 

[GodFearinGunTotin]

Must be different in the big cities, I don't think I've ever seen a police car in the parking lot of the ones locally.

Those would be Bedford and Jasper.

I think so too. I'm sure they're there from time to time because that's where "everybody" goes sooner or later but yeah, I think this is a location and/or demographic based problem.

 

[voidsherpa]

I think this is a location and/or demographic based problem.

I agree with this. So why must people victim blame this business?

 

[bobzilla]

I agree with this. So why must people victim blame this business?

Because don't ya know? Walmart is THE DEVIL! Everyone knows that only scum of the earth shop there and no one of any respectable family would go into one.

Wife and I do most of our shopping at WalMart and Sams. Y'all want to throw away extra money, I won't stop you.

 

[eldirector]

I agree with this. So why must people victim blame this business?

Because WalMart refuses to make any attempt to solve the issues.

Much like running a strip club, and shrugging your shoulders when the neighborhood complains about your clientele.

 

[bobzilla]

Because WalMart refuses to make any attempt to solve the issues.

Much like running a strip club, and shrugging your shoulders when the neighborhood complains about your clientele.

And what exactly can Walmart do legally? They can't detain. They can't discriminate. They can't tell certain types of people to stay out. So please, exactly how does walmart "solve" this issue of a ****ty neighborhood with ****ty people?

 

[bwframe]

When you drop a Wally World into the neighborhood of the liberal entitlement crowd, your gonna get crime. Bedford and Martinsville Walmarts are nice. Bloomington, not so much.

 

[voidsherpa]

And what exactly can Walmart do legally? They can't detain. They can't discriminate. They can't tell certain types of people to stay out. So please, exactly how does walmart "solve" this issue of a ****ty neighborhood with ****ty people?

This.

I'm no fan of Wal-Mart by any means. Maybe they should put up a sign at the front door stating "No Stealing", to stop all the theft.

 

[JTScribe]

And what exactly can Walmart do legally? They can't detain. They can't discriminate. They can't tell certain types of people to stay out. So please, exactly how does walmart "solve" this issue of a ****ty neighborhood with ****ty people?

On point. About all they can do is leave, and then usual suspects will start whining about "food deserts."

 

[RevoWood123]

And what exactly can Walmart do legally? They can't detain. They can't discriminate. They can't tell certain types of people to stay out. So please, exactly how does walmart "solve" this issue of a ****ty neighborhood with ****ty people?

Nobody forces Walmart to open a store in a ****ty location, nor does anybody force them to give up profits so they can be the low-price value leader of Chinese made stuff. If they want the crime issue solved, then they need to spend money to add LP services and hire more staff so that people are less likely to want to try and get away with shoplifting.

As far as spending more money, it usually doesn't save me that much more to shop at Walmart over any other retailer and my time is worth more than what I would save.

 

[eldirector]

And what exactly can Walmart do legally? They can't detain. They can't discriminate. They can't tell certain types of people to stay out. So please, exactly how does walmart "solve" this issue of a ****ty neighborhood with ****ty people?

Some thing other businesses have done to minimize the number of "undesirables" hanging around. Heck, same thing YOU might do, to keep the same off of your OWN property.

Good use of lighting. Good use of fences. Keep trash picked up. Keep the store in good repair. Have proper staffing, and instruct them to be more vigilant than maybe normal. Enforce policies and laws to the letter. Have private security that actively controls the property. Yeah, they can't arrest anyone, but they can make it tough to do much of anything without them looking over your shoulder. Make it hard to even loiter without getting hassled, and it becomes hard to commit a felony.

Or, shrug your shoulders, and let your customers rob each other on your property.