A self-described extreme couponer was arrested this week in Springdale, Arkansas, for allegedly stealing 185 unsold copies of the Sunday newspaper from a local grocery store. The store had left the copies outside their doors for their newspaper vendor to pick them back up and issue a credit for the unsold papers.
The couponer, Jamie VanSickler, claims she got permission from someone at the grocery store to collect the unsold papers, and was 'shocked and embarassed' when the police showed up to arrest her:
Van Sickler says she offered to pay for the papers she took, but Northwest Arkansas Newspaper, the parent company that publishes the local newspapers, decided to press charges instead.
The problem seems to be that store employees do not have the authority to offer unsold copies of the paper to customers -- because those copies actually belong to the newspaper itself, since they give the vendor a credit back on their invoices for papers that don't sell.
So that's how someone can accidentally steal newspapers -- by basically asking permission from the wrong people. It's another great reason to find alternative venues for getting extra coupons -- whether that's from family and friends, trading online, or for a clipping service.
Do you think this was a legitimate misunderstanding, or should newspaper companies press full charges in these sorts of situations? I'd love to hear your thoughts about this case, either in the comments section below, or over at the San Antonio Budget Grocery Facebook page.
Read more about the extreme couponing theft case in Arkansas here.
This was probably a case of misunderstanding. The employee most likely had no idea of the procedures and so thought he was doing a good thing, and the couponer was the same. This is just a great example of why we need to really check well before we do something.
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