Shoplifting not worth the ‘thrill’

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Updated: February 18, 2012 8:05AM

Dr. Wallace: I recently moved to my grandparents’ house in Irvine, Calif., because my parents are going through a nasty breakup. Two days before Christmas, a friend I just met at my new school invited me to go to a big mall in Newport Beach. Her mother was to drop us off and pick us up three hours later.

My friend and I visited a lot of shops. Just before it was time for us to look for her mother, we went into a large department store. My friend left me for a while in the shoe department where I was looking at new shoes.

When my friend returned, she told me that it was time to meet her mother, so we had to hurry. But when we left the store, a man came up to us and told us to follow him. He took us into a back room where two ladies asked my friend to open up a bag that she was carrying. She did and in it was something she hadn’t paid for. My friend started crying and said that she was sorry, but a lady called her mother. When her mother got to the store and found out her daughter had stolen a pair of sunglasses, she started crying. I was scared to death, but I had done nothing wrong, and I was allowed to call my grandmother to pick me up. Believe me, seeing my friend get caught shoplifting was a traumatic occurrence and it was even worse for my friend. I would hope that sharing this experience has convinced all the teens who read your column to say the same.

Nameless, Irvine, Calif.

Nameless: Thanks for the excellent advice. Shoplifting is a very serious offense. If convicted, the guilty party can have a criminal record that can hinder future employment. Some teens shoplift for the thrill of it. It’s a great source of excitement for them, until they get caught!

Write to Dr. Wallace
at rwallace@galesburg.net