I got a call to there one Saturday afternoon for a shoplifter. When I got there, the guy, about 20 years old, was sitting in the security room. When I asked for the rundown, they stated he had been spotted shoplifting about a couple of small items, and they followed him out of the store, and he took off running. Both the male and female security people took off after him and caught him in a wooded area about 1000 feet from the store. When they approached him, he pulled a pocket knife out and threatened them.
He eventually let them talk him into giving them the knife and coming back to the store.When I heard this, I went back in and cuffed him. He said 'Why are you making such a big deal over $5 in stuff?' "I told him they weren't pressing charges on the shoplifting since they got the stuff back from him. He said, 'Well why are you cuffing me?' I told him 'Well, you just let a misdemeanor shoplifting turn into a felony assault when you threatened them with the knife.'
