Kelly in Halifax was on her way to the bus terminal when a note in the window of a small souvenir shop caught her eye. A few days later, she spotted an update, too.
(And no, the black bars weren’t present in the original photos.)
related: Well, that’s one way to get your landlord’s attention.
55 responses so far ↓
#1
pony girl
I love it!
I would go in and buy something just to say that the fliers are a great idea. I hate thieves with an unending passion.
Aug 29, 2011 at 10:02 pm rating: 79
#2
Katie
this is why i want to move to halifax.
Aug 29, 2011 at 10:08 pm rating: 6
#3
LGH
I love wall of shame pics from security cameras, too many parents think my little darling would never do this. Yes they would. Shoplifting is a popular hobby among a lot of teens & they do it whether rich or poor.
Aug 29, 2011 at 10:09 pm rating: 38
#4
Marie-Ann
Fantastic! I’m all for naming and shaming. More places should do it
Aug 29, 2011 at 10:15 pm rating: 20
#5
Quite Contrary
The shop owner is smart to focus on facebook and youtube, instead of twitter. You can maximize embarrassment without the silly constraint of 140 characters.
Aug 29, 2011 at 10:17 pm rating: 31
#6
Canthz_B
I laid a criminal charge once, but the State moved her to a different youth home soon thereafter and I never saw her again.
Aug 29, 2011 at 11:21 pm rating: 23
#7
smelly old man
I approve of putting up flyers to shame shoplifters, but I don’t like the fact that they’re just leaving the photos there until he can pay for the stuff he stole. That makes the amount of shame time a shoplifter gets dependent on how quickly he can find the money, which is unfair since some children have more opportunities than others to obtain money.
It would be better to leave them up for a fixed period of time so all shoplifters could be shamed equally.
Aug 30, 2011 at 4:14 am rating: 9
#8
Christine
Is it me, or are they stealing from the woman’s make-up section? Now that raises a few questions over their motives. I’m thinking there’s three potential reasons. 1. (And the most likely) They are wee feckers who just enjoy the randomly stealing stuff. 2. They’re poor and it’s their mum’s birthday. 3. They are closet drag-queens and were compelled to steal by a need to hide their alter-egos. I’ve clearly thought too much about this!
Aug 30, 2011 at 5:08 am rating: 16
#9
iseefishtanks
I like the idea of the sign, but maybe their shoplifting behaviours could be stopped and corrected by calling the police? I believe in catching this stuff and nipping it in the bud while they’re young. They aren’t doing the kids or society any favors by not making them take their consequences. I do think the signs are pretty cool, though.
Aug 30, 2011 at 7:09 am rating: 4
#10
Dr. Chalkwitheringlicktacklefeff
I like the concept, but you’d think if a store owner has pictures of someone stealing something, they’d post the ones of them stealing something – not the picture of them standing looking at the shelf moments (presumably) before stealing something. I see absolutely nothing illegal going on in the specific photos they’ve chosen to use.
Other than that; Team Store.
Aug 30, 2011 at 7:56 am rating: 6
#11
SC
hahahahahahaaha…. police…. HAHAHAHAHAHAHA… you said police??
Hahahahahahahahahha
Aug 30, 2011 at 8:11 am rating: 0
#12
Beesus
that’s straight gangster of said shop-owner. Let’s be real, nothing is scarier than an enraged mom and/or dad.
Aug 30, 2011 at 8:45 am rating: 24
#13
Zorin
I sometimes wonder what sort of discipline kids get at home these days.
Had I been caught stealing stuff as a kid, my entire home life would have been completely annihilated through the wrath of my parents.
My video games and computer time were everything to me when I was a kid. They would have been taken away. (and were for short periods, several times, for minor transgressions. Shoplifting would have been the end, period.)
Aug 30, 2011 at 10:40 am rating: 13
#14
redheadwglasses
A local convenience store would post bad checks in its outer window so everybody walking by (downtown!) could see the names and addresses (and bank account numbers, now that I think of it) of the people who wrote bad checks then refused to cover the $ once contacted.
Aug 30, 2011 at 11:59 am rating: 10
#15
Zhopka
And as for me, I am completely against this sort of hall of shame. Really, no one on this entire site sees any problem with blackmailing minors by making their pictures public? Blah blah blah, they deserve it, etc. Sure. But like someone already said, call the police. This kind of moral public executions (shaming people by posting their photos) is exactly what “my” country did to everyone who wasn’t liked by someone else, for the entire 70 years of its existence. Then “your” country went to Cold War with “my” country, arguing that your individual-rights-based ideology is better. And then… the good old righteous public shaming methods get engaged once more. Ah, it’s almost like being back home again.
Do note that, objectively, we don’t REALLY have proof of these kids stealing anything. Technically, apology isn’t proof – they could have apologized just to get rid of the pictures. Still, everyone gets a kick out of the whole thing, feeling morally superior and all, according to some of these comments here. Hmm… I kinda find the whole development to be brilliant.
Aug 30, 2011 at 5:08 pm rating: 7
#16
CdnGinger
Whatever, Zhopka… I live in the murder capital of Canada. I’d rather have the police working on that than on chasing a bunch of punk kids who have too much time and too little supervision. I teach jr high… I can tell you that shaming most definitely does NOT compare to dictatorship, but it DOES stop bored mental midgets from doing it again… and serves as a warning to any others who think this may be a good idea for a good time.
Aug 30, 2011 at 10:58 pm rating: 13
#17
Zhopka
LOL jeez, I must have my ability to express myself all mangled up, if anyone thought I was comparing these guys to a “dictatorship”. Sorry if that’s the case! Just to clarify – in case anyone has any doubts – “dictators” in “my” country didn’t hang signs. They sorta just went and murdered people. As I said earlier, signs were hung up by anyone who didn’t like anyone else. I mean that, guys. If you thought your neighbour drinks too much, you went to the other neighbours and together, you hung up a shaming sign with his or her picture. Then you went home, feeling proud (if a bit shaky from all the alcohol you yourself have had). Facts didn’t have to be a part of your verdict. Just like here, technically – no proof admissible in the court of law. Just a picture of two minors with a label “shoplifter”. Nah, I stand by my earlier post: this is brilliant.
Aug 31, 2011 at 8:44 am rating: 3
#18
Zhopka
(Oh guys, I’m so proud of myself, I found you an example! This is a piece of a well-known 1968 film; fastforward to 7:01 and, for a few seconds, you’ll see what I mean.
No photos there, incidentally, – names are named instead. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P9rgDaGH8wI )
Aug 31, 2011 at 9:17 am rating: 0
#19
Maya
I got caught doing this when I was about 8 or 9 years old. Boy, did I regret it! Luckily they didn’t need to shame me with pictures, but I was plenty shamed anyway.
Sep 2, 2011 at 7:51 pm rating: 0
#20
Wat!
This was in Halifax?! I am oddly proud of my city right now.
Sep 5, 2011 at 6:38 am rating: 4
#21
Golgathoth
They aren’t very good shoplifters, they didn’t even check for cameras. No creativity or observation there. It’s not even particularly difficult to avoid hazards like that when you’re a thief.
Sep 10, 2011 at 9:57 am rating: 0
#22
Amy
I’m curious as to why it’s considered more appropriately “anonymizing” to put the black bar solely across these youths’ eyes?
I consider the redheaded kid’s hair colour to be more of an identifying trait than the shape and/or colour of his eyes.
Sep 14, 2011 at 11:27 am rating: 0
#23
Kai
XD Oh man. I’ve seen that sign too, and thought it would be perfect for the site, but never had a camera on hand. I think it’s a brilliant strategy, and more importantly, it worked.
Sep 23, 2011 at 4:43 pm rating: 1
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