AfterDawn: Tech news

Woman pepper sprays shoppers over Xbox 360

Written by James Delahunty @ 28 Nov 2011 2:58 User comments (14)

Woman pepper sprays shoppers over Xbox 360 Authorities describe scene as "customer vs customer shopping rage."
How determined would you be to get your hands on a discounted Xbox 360? A woman waiting for Black Friday deals at a Porter Ranch Walmart in Los Angeles waited in line with her two children, and some pepper spray. According to reports, she started to attack other customers with the pepper spray as soon as she saw store employees removing plastic packaging off discounted items for Black Friday.

She was apparently looking to get a discounted Xbox 360 console and some games. Witnesses say as soon as the doors opened, she used the pepper spray to subdue other customers there determined to get discounts.

Firefighters and the LAPD responded to the attack quickly, treating 20 customers suffering from coughing, extreme swelling and redness of the face. One other customer required treatment at a nearby hospital.



Police are trying to track down the woman and will release photos to the press. They were reportedly looking into her method of payment in an attempt to get details that might lead them to her residence. Unfortunately, there were other reports of Black Friday violence across the U.S., as there is every year.

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14 user comments

128.11.2011 04:10

People have been killed, trampled to death on Black Fridays, and for what? A meaningless piece of object. End of the world (2012) can't come soon enough. The world is one messed up place with crap like this, not to mention facebook/twitter/starbucks self-loving twats almost everyone is now these days. I'm sure someone up there is looking down upon us thinking where the **** did we go wrong.

This message has been edited since its posting. Latest edit was made on 28 Nov 2011 @ 4:11

228.11.2011 04:15

maybe they should just do it online if people act like that weird characters in the world.

328.11.2011 04:58
microhardened
Unverified new user

apparently xbox 360 is full of shit, she just wanted a blu ray copy of super 8.

428.11.2011 05:18

Originally posted by mike.m:
People have been killed, trampled to death on Black Fridays, and for what? A meaningless piece of object. End of the world (2012) can't come soon enough. The world is one messed up place with crap like this, not to mention facebook/twitter/starbucks self-loving twats almost everyone is now these days. I'm sure someone up there is looking down upon us thinking where the **** did we go wrong.

It's sad to read stuff like this but then again mate, we have to remember that media reports don't generally reflect the population. I say that knowing by covering that story above I'm sort of "part of the problem" in a way too, but I have a lot of faith in humanity at the same time.

I just buried my grandfather, who was 90 when he died last Wednesday. It occurred to me that from all his long years, he did not die with a single enemy. He served with the U.N. in Cyprus, and always talked about serving in the Congo many decades ago, so essentially his entire life was dedicated to service to his family, to his country and to misfortunate people a long way away from his comforts at home.

Then also the amount of care given to him by my aunts and uncles, and by us, his grandchildren, and how nobody ever complained about doing things for him, taking him to the bathroom, putting him to bed every night and getting him out of bed in the mornings, taking him for a walk in the wheelchair etc.

That story is reflected across, I would say, most families, and at the end of the day that's the really important thing that you never see reported in the news, because it doesn't sell.

What I'm trying to say is the media doesn't reflect how people really are. The vast majority of people from all ages are basically good.
This message has been edited since its posting. Latest edit was made on 28 Nov 2011 @ 5:19

528.11.2011 09:27

Originally posted by mike.m:
People have been killed, trampled to death on Black Fridays, and for what? A meaningless piece of object. End of the world (2012) can't come soon enough. The world is one messed up place with crap like this, not to mention facebook/twitter/starbucks self-loving twats almost everyone is now these days. I'm sure someone up there is looking down upon us thinking where the **** did we go wrong.
Finally someone that thinks like me!! I thought i was the messed up one :)

628.11.2011 17:16

While all these idiots ran to Walmart at 10PM on Thanksgiving, I sat in the comfort of my own home and ordered everything I wanted at these sale prices a day before Thanksgiving with free shipping.

728.11.2011 19:50

Several years ago when I worked at Wal-Mart, there were 2 days we all dreaded to work....Black Friday and the day after Christmas. I had been yelled at, screamed at, nearly knocked off a 6ft ladder multiple times, with people upset that I was in their way, nearly trampled......it was ridiculous. We had several police officers to help out with the chaos, and during the 2 years I worked there, they always had made several arrests for everything from fighting, to shoplifting, to public intoxication.

829.11.2011 02:10

End of this case: http://apne.ws/rA6Fmv

There is around 12 incidents where people get hurt or kill in U.S. on Black Friday: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-573...ice-in-walmart/

This message has been edited since its posting. Latest edit was made on 29 Nov 2011 @ 2:11

929.11.2011 20:21

Glad there's no Black Friday in Asia... (I think)

103.12.2011 02:16

Couldnt have said it better myself Mike M.

This message has been edited since its posting. Latest edit was made on 03 Dec 2011 @ 2:17

113.12.2011 02:53

Why must everyone take such a negative view of all this? Everyone who was injured was shopping at a WalMart...that means they were intentionally undermining the economy of the country. I wish people got pepper sprayed, shot, trampled, and otherwise injured/killed at WalMart every day...they might stop going there.

123.12.2011 03:18

Here't the bit I really don't get (aside from a woman Pepper spraying others and with her children there???).

It says towards the bottom of the article that "Police are trying to track down the woman and will release photos to the press. They were reportedly looking into her method of payment in an attempt to get details that might lead them to her residence."

Does that mean that even though she pepper sprayed several people, she was still able, unchallenged, to go in to the store and actually purcahse the xboox and leave without being arrested or at least detained?

133.12.2011 04:22

Originally posted by stan101:
Here't the bit I really don't get (aside from a woman Pepper spraying others and with her children there???).

It says towards the bottom of the article that "Police are trying to track down the woman and will release photos to the press. They were reportedly looking into her method of payment in an attempt to get details that might lead them to her residence."

Does that mean that even though she pepper sprayed several people, she was still able, unchallenged, to go in to the store and actually purcahse the xboox and leave without being arrested or at least detained?


Yes....she actually was able to purchase one and leave without being detained of arrested. They had to look at the surveillance cameras along with those cell phones who recorded the incident. A later news broadcast said she turned herself in, refused to answer any questions without a lawyer, and was released pending further investigation.

143.12.2011 04:41

Originally posted by rtm27:
Originally posted by stan101:
Here't the bit I really don't get (aside from a woman Pepper spraying others and with her children there???).

It says towards the bottom of the article that "Police are trying to track down the woman and will release photos to the press. They were reportedly looking into her method of payment in an attempt to get details that might lead them to her residence."

Does that mean that even though she pepper sprayed several people, she was still able, unchallenged, to go in to the store and actually purcahse the xboox and leave without being arrested or at least detained?


Yes....she actually was able to purchase one and leave without being detained of arrested. They had to look at the surveillance cameras along with those cell phones who recorded the incident. A later news broadcast said she turned herself in, refused to answer any questions without a lawyer, and was released pending further investigation.
...And they didn't press any charges because they said they couldn't prove that it wasn't in self defense; apparently people were getting knocked down and trampled by other customers, and she claims this is why she sprayed randomly into a crowd. This seems dubious at best because if she was in any danger, would she have kept going into the crowd in order to get an xbox?

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