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Torts Keyed to Miller
Murray v. Wal-Mart, Inc.
Citation:
874 F.2d 555 (8th Cir. 1989)Facts
Murray (Plaintiff), a Black woman who was shopping at Wal-Mart (Defendant), sued the store for malicious prosecution after they investigated her for shoplifting when she had not in fact stolen any products. Upon direction by the store manager, Harris, an assistant store manager detained Murray and inquired about cologne that Murray had looked at in the store. Murray denied the accusation of shoplifting and pulled her halter top down to show that she was not concealing any merchandise. Harris directed Murray to accompany him back into the store. Profane and racially derogatory comments were made by Harris at this time. Murray was escorted to the second floor of the store. Employees emptied the contents of Murray’s purse onto the floor. More derogatory statements were made to Murray while this episode unfolded. The Wal-Mart employees then telephoned the local police and, based upon the advice of a local prosecutor, requested prosecution of Murray for shoplifting. Murray was taken into custody and was searched by a female officer at the station. The search revealed no concealed items. Murray was denied access to her heart medication when she requested it for pain. Following her release, she sought medical attention because of her nervous condition.
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