We can cut this that you won't go to jail at least for tonight because even if you these warrants come back and they're not good because of your priors, because you're on probation, I can't just release you with a summons. It will have to be jail tonight. I will do that. 2025. Officers responded to a Walmart theft report in what appeared to be a routine retail fraud call. What made this encounter legally significant was not the theft itself, but every decision made after it. She told her to come over to watch the kids and Okay. So, did she ask you to watch the kids? She didn't just like walk off? She just pointed to the kids, so I'm assuming that was come watch the kids, but I did not hear what she was saying when she left. She just took off. Go over there. This is adult conversation, not children's. >> Yeah, it sounds like she has a lot of theft history based on what we found, so um what's your plan? You're going to take them back to the house or >> with me. I'm not I'm not going to abandon them. Yeah, we're fine with releasing them to you as long as we can have her verbally say that. Otherwise, they're going to have to go to children services if we >> I am not letting them go with children services. If we can't get a hold of her, we have to have actual permission. Well, you know she's not coming back. Right. I I understand that. How did you guys get here? I drove. Okay, you drove everybody? Yes. How did she get She's walking somewhere. Where is she? Is she on foot? Where she went, I don't know. Because I was pointed to the kids. Got you. Can we go in here so that they're not listening to everything? Sorry, she's got things on her. All right, you find the officer just to make sure they're safe with them. This is your phone call or I mean it makes sense that it is. Whatever, she's got warrants. She's got charges for that. I don't care. I want to make [music] sure the kids are safe. I will do that. Hey, I'm here with the officer. They want verbal consent that [music] I can take the kids. All right. Just Just so you were My name is Sergeant Williams with the Hurst Police Department. I I only briefly spoke with my officer here. Uh but it sounds like you just left your kids here uh after you committed a theft and decided to run away. So, what we're going to do is we're going to file warrants for theft. We're going to file warrants for child endangerment for each one of your kids that you decided to abandon here. Then we're going to also charge you with contributing to the delinquency of a minor for a theft while in the presence of your kid. At this point, I appreciate your verbal consent. I'm not so sold on it. I can't verify who you are. I have no information for you. All I have is a name and a phone number. So, what I'm likely to do is just I'm going to have to take the kids to children's services and have a legal guardian pick them up from there. My best friend can't take them. No. No. The easiest way for for this whole thing to be to have went down is would you have got a piece of paper and a summons and showed up to a court date. Can't see who you are. You abandoned your kids like this. No, I'm not one for favors or believing somebody who is willing to leave their kid to to believe that these kids are theirs or who they are. So, if you want to show back up and and receive your paperwork and your summons for your future court date, I'm fine with that. Otherwise, no. Our children are going to go to children's services. So, if I show up, I'm just going to get a charge and I'm not going to go to jail? Yeah, that's the whole plan. You get a summons. You have a court date. We verify who you are and make sure that you are the person that you say. We'll give you a summons for the theft. You'll be on your way. Okay. Well, I'm going to come back to the residence. Okay. That's probably for the best. I really don't want anything bad for your kids here. So. Yeah, I don't want to I just don't want to go to jail either. I'm I didn't mean to I wasn't trying to do anything wrong. All right. I understand. We'll we'll talk to you here in just a second. Okay. All right. Now, I want to I do want to know honestly because I do have the kids. Is she going to jail? I don't If she shows up in the next reasonable amount of time, the only thing that prevents her from going to jail and not just being issued charges, does she have some crazy warrants that are that are still >> I don't know if she has >> warrants. I don't believe so. Okay. So, that's that's what prevents us >> That's what prevents us with thefts like this from issuing someone a summons. >> 176 And unless they're repeat offenders that we just deal with all the time or just consistently do have thefts across a record that we have to keep telling them to stop stealing in the city. People walk out of here with with summons. Okay. I mean, this this would be our like a fifth one today from here. Okay. I'm just concerned cuz, you know, I do have the kids and they like I was telling him, the one has anxiety. >> So, can't deal with it. I know. I know. And it's And it's terrible. She does have two possible warrants for theft. Um here's the deal. If she does come down here, likely if those are verified, we will have to make an arrest. But if she is here and we can verbally see, "Okay, this is her." We can release her kids to you. But nothing But nothing's been verified yet. So, on on the on the very worst end of this, she has to go to jail and you get the kids because we're able to verify who she is and that that she's okay to send the kids with you. Speaking to somebody over the phone, not being able to see their face, having no ID on them, not being able to verify like they've seen mom, mom has seen them like, "Yeah, that's my mom. Yeah, that's my kids." Hey, yeah. How do I just send somebody >> I I completely understand. So, But I just wanted to be prepared [clears throat] cuz she's going to freak out and like I said, I have to control the kids. >> And even if that's the case, we don't want to go and traumatize kids, right? So, if So, I can have you take the kids to the car, but let her Let her give them hugs, say, "Hey, they're You're going to You're going to stay stay stay the night with you for a little bit. I I have to go talk to somebody." Not even have them see her get put in handcuffs or in the back of the car or anything. We can We can deal with all of that. None of that is an issue for us. And that, again, is on the the far worst side of things. On the other end, if if the warrants are no good, then they're no good and you all go home and she gets the paper summons and signed. >> I'm hoping that's how it goes. That suspect is now back at Walmart. I'm making contact with her. Under Michigan compiled laws section 750.356, retail fraud is graded by the value of merchandise. A value below $200 constitutes third-degree retail fraud, a misdemeanor carrying up to 93 days. Officers correctly assessed this as a misdemeanor level offense, making a summons the standard disposition under normal circumstances. Those circumstances changed the moment probation entered the equation. Under MCL section 771.4, a new offense while on probation eliminates the summons option entirely. A custodial arrest becomes legally mandatory, not a matter of officer discretion, but statutory required. On the child endangerment charge filed under MCL section 750.136b, the statute requires placing a child in unreasonable risk of harm. Because an adult known to the children Diana was present throughout, prosecutors ultimately determined the endangerment threshold was not met. The charge was dismissed. That outcome was legally sound. Abandonment in the legal sense requires absence of any responsible adult. The contributing to delinquency citation under MCL section 750.145 was legally arguable, but strategically premature. Siding three charges in rapid succession before facts were fully verified. Risks overstating jeopardy, a practice courts have flagged as potentially coercive in custodial contexts. Regarding child custody protocol, officers correctly required verified parental consent before releasing minors to Diana. A nonverbal gesture pointing at children while fleeing does not constitute lawful delegation of temporary guardianship under Michigan family law. Officers had no legal basis to release the children to an unverified adult without either parental voice confirmation or a children's services transfer. The subject's pre-arrest statements admitting probation status, prior theft convictions, and the events at the register were made voluntarily before custodial arrest under Berkemer versus McCarty 1984. Miranda warnings are not required during non-custodial field questioning even when incriminating. Those statements were legally obtained and would be fully admissible. The subject's candor, while personally costly, was legally unprotected. Yep. Um, now that you're here I'm sorry. I shouldn't have ran. I should have just waited for you guys. I just got a little nervous and Yeah, it I've been in trouble for theft before. I'm not going to lie to you and I've been clean a whole year, you know, I've been out of jail a year, haven't gotten any trouble. Got you. So, I just got a little nervous and I didn't know what to do, so You don't have any weapons or anything on you? >> I give you No. You're not going to take off on us or anything like that? No. No. Um, if you do Okay, then there'll be another charge, yeah. So, what we're going to have you do is they'll come out. Uh Yeah, will you hold my phone? Yes, I will. Don't hang up on it. So, we do have your consent to let your friend take all of your children. I thought not to do that. Okay. Am I going to be arrested? Step over here. Um I said I don't >> your arrest for theft. So, we're in the process of verifying >> I do have warrants for my arrest? We're in the process of verifying them with Malcolm County. If you do have these warrants, um, you will be going to jail. Okay, yeah, I shouldn't have any warrants. We're going to have to check. Um, have you ever missed a court date before for this stuff or you just Mhm. No, I've been done with court. I am on probation, I'll be honest with you. Got you. Um, but I know all when you pull up my name it says it's a red mark by it. It says check docket for processing a payment. What's your What's your probation for? Is it also for theft? Yeah. Okay. There's no way that we can cut this that you won't go to jail at least for tonight cuz even if you these warrants to back and they're not good because of your priors, because you're on probation, I can't just release you with a summons. It will have to be jail tonight. I will take them overnight. Well, my mom my mom can't take them. >> I will take them. >> Can you Can I call >> I'll take them overnight. Okay. I I'm on probation. I'm going to get a probation violation. Right. And I understand that, but again, it sort of comes with the territory, right? You're an adult, made an adult decision. There's not a whole lot more that I can do for you there, okay? >> know how long I'm going to be like sitting there for this one probation violation? I mean, I mean, it's going to be more than one overnight. I don't know how this is going to work. Again, if it I'm not an expert. I'm not an Yeah, I'll let you make any phone calls that you want, but Do you have a I'm going to be in there for a long time. I don't Can I write your phone number down? We'll We'll get phone numbers and everything for people you can contact. Do you Do you at least have her car? She's in her face, please. Yes, we already got that situated. What What we're going to do at this point right now, I'm not going to put you in handcuffs at the moment. >> Okay. I'm going to let you tell your kids that they're going to be staying the night with her. Okay. Do you want me to just take them? I want to tell them goodbye. Okay. So, I'm going to give you a moment to calm down cuz obviously, we don't want to scare your kids or anything. We We want them to come out and see mom is normal. Um so, take a moment, collect yourself, and we'll have them come out, and then they're going to go with her, okay? Okay. Can you call my mom on your phone? My phone's with Chase on it. Tell him I'm going to jail. I'm going to be in there for Do you know how long you think? I don't know. So, you say you have a probation for Is it also theft? Yeah, but it's from Delaware County, but it's been transferred here. I don't know how that works. I mean, I I did I honestly wasn't trying to steal. I I I was waiting for them. Like, I even offered to pay for it. I mean, I know people are probably cuz I'm on this highway, so you want to take me to jail. Mom! I'm going to jail. Because I forgot it because I was scanning something with my mom, AND I HONESTLY FORGOT TO SCAN SOMETHING BECAUSE THE KIDS WERE DISTRACTING ME, and they caught ME, AND BECAUSE I'M ON PROBATION, THEY'RE TAKING ME TO JAIL. MOMMY, I need Can you keep it down just a little bit? You're making a scene. It's okay. I'M WITH DEANNA. DEANNA has the Sorry. Sorry. Deanna Deanna has the kids, but there's just there's no way to get around it because I'm on probation. I'M GOING TO HAVE TO PROBABLY SPEND A LOT of time in jail. Mommy. Mommy. Mommy. No, Mommy. I need [laughter] you right now. So, Mom's not going to come out here. What we can do for you, I can take Mom's phone number, you can give her a call from the jail. So, just tell her what's going on and and give me her phone number. >> please help me. Okay. All right. I didn't I wasn't >> [laughter] >> Please do. All right. I love you, too. Bye. Can I finish my phone call real quick by chance? My It's my boyfriend. He's He's in prison. I just want to let him know that I'm going coming with you guys. Um give me his phone number. You can make a call like that. >> call him. He's in prison. Yeah, can I just tell him goodbye and I love him? Like, please. Okay. Um All right. Um all right. Well, I'm going to get off here cuz I think they're getting ready to put me in cuffs, but I need to say goodbye to the kids. Do you think Do you think it'll look good on me that I'm in pro in rehab still and everything and they might cut me give me a second chance? All right. I love you. All right. Bye. Here you go. Uh Thank you. I'm so mad at myself. Talk to them. Say whatever. I'm not going to be in there long. I don't know. Please promise. I don't know. I didn't All they did is As long as you forgot to scan these few items, girls, and do I have to pay to pay for them and I It's going to be okay with me. It's going to be okay. I'm sorry, guys. Let me stop crying. Deanna's going to take you home with her, okay? Yeah, she's good. She's just got to go talk to somebody and that's it. And then and then she'll be back out to be back to see you again, so. Now, if Not like she's going anywhere super far. I love you guys. It's It's going to be all right. It's It's all It's going to be all right. I I'm not I didn't get I'm not in big trouble this time. They verify I Oh, yeah. It'll work. All right, so at this point just turn around for your safety and my direct. We're going to use several sets of cuffs on you. That way it's uh not super uncomfortable. What what When people are cooperative we try to use two cuffs. I probably won't be booked until like tonight, but I I will call whatever. All right, cops up. Call call call my mom now and let her know. All righty. I'm going to go over here. Oh, sorry. I didn't know. I'm sorry. My mind is I'm just I'm upset with myself like I'm going to sit. Lead officer receives a B+. Procedurally sound throughout accurate charge advisement, proper warrant verification, and a measured offer of the summons option before probation status was confirmed. The decision to delay handcuffing until children were clear reflects trauma-informed practice consistent with modern policing standards. Deducted for premature enumeration of unverified charges on the phone call, the subject receives a C+. Flight upon confrontation converted a civil summons situation into a custodial arrest. Every adverse consequence in this encounter originated from that single decision. Credit given for voluntary return, full cooperation, and compliance during arrest actions that preserved the children's placement with Diana rather than children services. Diana receives an A. Calm, accurate, and child-focused throughout an unanticipated situation. Her facilitation of the phone contact resolved the custody question and prevented a children's services intervention. Three legal lessons from this encounter. First, probation status is a force multiplier for consequences. A misdemeanor summons becomes mandatory jail the moment a new offense occurs while on supervision. Second, flight always costs more than compliance. The subject's 90-second departure triggered child endangerment charges, warrant verification, and probation violation proceedings. Third, verbal consent has legal weight in field operations. Officers cannot and should not release minor based on assumption, gesture, or informal arrangement alone. 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