When spring hits, a judge in Michigan is giving shoplifters sponges and telling them to wash vehicles in a Walmart parking lot.
Judge Jeffrey Clothier hopes that the unique kind of community service will deter Walmart theft and reward customers who might face price increases or perhaps store closures if crimes persist. There will be complimentary car washes.
Not all people who steal are evil, in my opinion. Clothier, who was freshly elected to the Genesee County District Court, stated that sometimes people are simply unlucky. However, breaking the law will have repercussions.
Walmart wash penalties for misdemeanor stealing at the Grand Blanc Township, Michigan, store, which is 50 miles north of Detroit, started this week, Clothier told The Associated Press. At weekend activities there in March and April, he thinks 75 to 100 individuals may eventually be asked to wash automobiles.
Walmart is on board, the judge declared, and would supply supplies and water. An email requesting comment on Friday was not immediately answered by the company’s Arkansas headquarters.
When he joined the bench in January, Clothier said he was astounded to witness the variety of retail thefts, noting that the criminals came from both inside and outside of Michigan.
He stated, “It’s just crazy,” adding that one day he had 48 instances of this nature on his docket.
The judge stated, “I think it will be embarrassing to be out there washing cars if you see someone you know.”
And there will be others up to their elbows in suds than shoplifters.
“I’ll be there with them, washing cars,” Clothier remarked.
–The Associated Press/Ed White
