My question involves criminal law for the state of: Florida
I am accused of stealing 7 bottles of water, a bag of doritos, and deodorant from Wal-Mart. I am an employee of over 2 years. I go to a pre-trial hearing soon where I am requesting a dismissal. I didn't do it. God as my witness.
For the prosecutor, we have this to dismiss.
1) Video of me working with Asset Protection more than a dozen times with witnesses to confirm. Rosie (Asset Protection) and Keiona Milligan (Assistant Store Manager working closely with Rosie) can be used as witnesses. The video tapes can confirm. This includes: checking the mens bathroom for Rosie (AP), watching the garden door for AP while they phone the police, keeping an eye out for this male or that female coming through my line or out the garden door, speaking with AP about incidences of theft, answering questions about suspicious activity, speaking with the police about Garden Center theft, and following AP outside for security. I was also in charge of marking Garden Center items as theft and returning the empty packages to the stolen bin.
* Rosie and Keiona left the store a couple of months before this happened, which is why I think the AP guy called the police without knowing the exact details of the situation. Rosie would have known better and so would Keiona.
The volume of theft at the Leesburg Wal-Mart was so high that the 'Shrink Board' in the back room had to be taken down during my time at that store. The part of the store where I worked, the Garden Center, is known by management to have more theft than any other area of the store. Garden Center is where thieves go to pocket items off camera and where thieves always go to attempt to exit the store with stolen items because a door greeter is always at the front entrances surrounded by other customers. One of my jobs as a lead cashiers was to stop theft and suspicious customers. To do this, I was required to work with Asset Protection many times. On camera.
* Verification that I was aware Garden Center has more theft than any area of the store which is why they are the most watched area of the store. I was witness to many arrests made in the Garden Center and required to speak to the police many times. We know we're the most watched in Garden Center.
2) Video of me placing unpaid items bar code facing upwards towards the camera and then looking up at the camera around five times during a 30 day time period. Shawn, a witness in the meeting with AP, can confirm that my first words to Robert when he called me into the office was "The camera guy, yeah, I look at you all the time" and that Robert, at that time, responded with "yeah, we've seen you doing push-ups at your register" so Robert knew that I was no stranger to being watched on camera. Robert knew that I was very in tune with Asset Protection when he called the police. Please contact Shawn to confirm that Robert knew he was not dealing with a random employee when he filed his incriminating report.
3) Video of me running in-place and doing push-ups at my register that month and the whole month before, so I was aware of the fact that my activity had made me the most watched employee in the store during this time. The door greeter, Darlene, can confirm that she was aware that my reason for doing push ups and running in-place at my register was because of my quitting of cigarettes and energy drinks. As I put it to Darlene, I was "bouncing off the Walls of Wal-Mart" with an extreme boost in energy which is why I was consuming up to six bottles of water each day for over two months to flush my system and support my new health kick. During those 60 days, I paid for the bottles of water on my break, lunch, or when another cashier was around.
4) Video of me making eye contact with the camera, more than twice, when placing my unpaid bottles of water on top of the register. I knew I was consuming more items than my co-workers, so I would place the water on my register, look at the camera at times, and then pay on break or lunch. Same as others who worked in Garden.
5) Video of me consuming three to six bottles of water at my register each day for more than 60 days. The video can prove that I always paid for my water on break, lunch, or when another cashier was around as I was not allowed to ring up my own items. I was not the only cashier to do this in the Garden Center or at the front end.
6) Video of me consuming unpaid Carmelo Bars, Snickers Bars, M&M's, Rice Crispy Treats, Hershey Bars, Gatorade, and chips regularly during this time period. I paid on break, lunch, or when I seen another cashier. The video will show that every single cashier in the garden center had checked out my empty bottles, empty snack wrappers, and empty chip bags. In my opinion, that should help the prosecution to see that I had nothing to hide for those 60 days and am an innocent hard-working employee. I was doing the same thing I seen other cashiers do. The only reason I was consuming or buying items from the garden center in the first place was because of the quitting of cigarettes and energy drinks -- extreme sugar cravings, flushing my system with water every day, brain fog, sweating all the time in the hottest area of the store with a broken AC (deodorant, spray), and doing push-ups and jogging at my register in front of the entire staff and door greeter. I made a joke to my co-workers that I was "running the register" as I was "running" at my register; they did not mind and were supportive of my decision to quit smoking and drinking energy drinks.
7) Video to prove that cashiers working in the Garden are not supposed to stand at their register doing nothing. The officers police report was not correct in saying that I "walked out of the view of the camera", but I can see how he could think that. I work ON camera.
8) Video of me putting on deodorant and spray around a dozen times at my register during those months. On Camera. I think I even looked at the camera a few of those times. I would also brush my teeth in the Garden. On the days when it rained, I would bath with the water from the leaking roof. Just joking...I splashed some water on my head only one time from the leaking roof, but that was only because it was so hot and humid outside and inside with no AC. The Garden Center is the hottest area of the store and the AC was always broke. I was required to do work outside in the heat even when my main task was running the register, so that is why I needed deodorant by my register at all times. I would always keep the deodorant under the register to be used when needed, such as coming in from the heat. Anyone who reviews the tapes can see that I was not committing a crime or stealing deodorant.
9) Video to prove that the time in the report was not the first time that I grabbed a deodorant or spray without paying until my break, but it was a time that I forgot the deodorant was still under my register out of view and did not pay. Accidents happen. It was not a crime or theft.
10) Video of me actually taking a bottle of water out of the trash by my register, putting it back on top of the register, then waiting for a cashier to come around to pay. I specifically remember this, and I specifically remember doing the same thing with a rice crispy treat wrapper. It was habit. I must have thrown 150 bottles of water, gatorade, energy drinks, chip bags, and snacks into that trash can in just that short amount of time. Pure habit.
* The police report said that I stated, "Why would I steal just water?". That's incorrect. I simply asked the question, "Why would I steal water?" and was expecting an answer to help me understand how they could think an employee of more than two-years could steal bottles of water knowing that they're being watched. It still doesn't make sense to me.
* I would like to ask the prosecutor to please inform my public defender of the exact reason why I'm being prosecuted by the state of Florida for the accusation of "pretending to forget to pay for water bottles that he put in the trash can as a way of stealing on camera." I'm the one being accused here, and I myself cannot think of one single reason why I would do this even if I wanted to do this. I would need a reason, an intent, a cause, and a purpose to do something so foolish. I simply forgot to pay for them due to the large amount of water I was consuming at my register for more than 60 days (three to six bottles each day). Who is responsible for wasting the prosecutors time, then? I do not wish to waste the time of the court, the judge, the public defender, or the prosecutor.
Has Lake County court ever been sent an EMPLOYEE from ANY Wal-Mart with the case of "forgot to pay for my beverage on break", because I've been told that almost all situations like this are handled with a coaching from management to tell the employee that if they forget to pay for a beverage (or items) on break again, then they will be written up and made to sign a piece of paper saying that they forgot to pay for a beverage on break and could be fired if it happens again. Management was supposed to have the option to handle the situation.
To my knowledge, I am the only Garden Center employee at store #800 to be arrested for forgetting to pay for beverages on break in the history of Leesburg Wal-Mart. What are the chances of this happening again? I'm asking the prosecutor to please agree to dismiss the case. I don't think it's right to waste all of this time and insult the court and judge on a case like this. This should have never been brought to the attention of the court, in my humble opinion.
Grounds for dismissal:
1) No intent to steal.
2) Video, witnesses, and proof of my innocence.
3) Improper charging document. Roberts report is far from accurate, incorrect, and incriminating.
4) No probable cause from Asset Protection. In my opinion, a 2+ year employee would not pretend to forget water by throwing it in the trash without paying when they're already buying 3 to 6 water bottles every day for months...I could see if I had only been drinking water a few times here and there, then supposedly 'forgot', because that would make sense...but 3-6 bottles every day for months...no way. I can't think of one reason why I would do this...even if it was viewed as a 'go out with a bang" type of thing, or if they thought I wanted to try to get a job in AP, or if they thought I wanted to get caught to promote myself in the streets of Leesburg for stealing water, or if they thought I wanted to get caught to go to court and do a big court thing where I talk about water to everyone (cory duval, court of law, has a ring to it), or if they thought I was testing the new AP girls, after rosie left, to see if they would let me get away with it or confront me, or if they thought I am a psychopath who gets off on stealing water on camera, or if they thought I was trying to impress a girl by going to jail over Wal-Mart water, or any other reason - none of them make any sense at all or sound like a legit reason for me to do this. That is because I DID NOT do this. I forgot to pay due to circumstances, and I really am innocent. This was not theft, and this was not a crime. I was going through caffeine and nicotine withdraws (brain fog, forgetfulness) and experiencing a boost in energy that distracted me. It was habit of putting my water in the trash every time the water bottle was empty. I could see if I put the water in my pocket or a bag, or if I wasn't always throwing tons of empty water bottles in that trash can every day for months - that could be viewed as a possible water-bottle-criminal. I didn't do this and would never do this. I don't know ANYONE who would do this because no one would have any reason to do this.
5) Lack of evidence sufficient enough for the prosecution to have a case. I wanted to say something connective, like "It doesn't hold water", but I was worried that it would make this look like it was all my elaborate scheme...I mean what am I here, the #1 professional Wal-Mart water heist designer in the USA? Is Wal-Mart paying me to fix leaks in Garden Center theft like those guys paid to find holes in security software or possible highly garden prison break points? I think not. This was not my doing. This was an accident and all a big misunderstanding. I am innocent. I don't steal. This is foolish. I must be the only Garden Center employee at store #800 to have ever been arrested for accusations of stealing beverages by the way of "pretending to forget". Forgetting isn't even a write-up; it's a coaching from management.
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I am requesting a c4 motion to dismiss at the pre-trial under the state of florida...this is ridiculous...i am accused of stealing water and a bag of doritos from walmart....i didnt do it....so.....is this enough? do yall think the case will be dismissed or what?

