Heather Ellis: A Bad Customer Put in Her Place, Or a Bad System at Work?

 

November 24, 2009

 

On January 6, 2007, Heather Ellis went on a fateful shopping trip to the local Wal-Mart in Kennett, Mo.  She got herself a box of cookies and a small plastic bottle of orange juice and proceeded to the checkout.  Apparently shopping with her cousin, the two supposedly used the old tactic of taking two separate lines with the intention of the one in the slower line joining the other in the faster line when they arrived at the cashier.  When she got into line at the faster lane, run by veteran cashier Betsy Walls, she was pushed by white customer Teresa Kinder and had her items pushed aside so Kinder could put hers up instead.  

 

At least, this was her story.  

 

Now that the surveillance video has been released, the public is free to decide for themselves.  Given that Ellis has now accepted a plea bargain and taken responsibility for her actions (the ones that occurred on camera anyhow), it seems as though the case has already been decided by Ellis herself.  However, through her attempts to humbly own up to her guilt, Ellis continues to carry an air of innocence, as though all of this was inflicted upon her.  By Teresa Kinder, by Besty Walls, by assistant manager Kay McDaniel, and by Walmart ICS Team Leader, Loretta Cunningham, Walmart CSM, Linda Maddox, Walmart Cashier, Robin Flood, Former Kennett police officer, Al Fisher, Sgt. Joe Stewart of the Kennett Police Department, Officer Phillip Caldwell of the Kennett Police Department, Officer Alan Campbell of the Kennett Police Department, Cpl. Craig Moody of the Kennett Police Department, Witness Brandon Elliott, and Witness Ashley Elliott, who, according to Ellis, are all filthy racist liars.  The hope that they will come forward and say so, and "step up to the plate and admit that they're wrong, too" was supposedly her motivation for pleading guilty, according to her statement to reporters.

 

While I'm sure no cashiers were brought into the courtroom as expert witnesses, I believe this trial might not have taken three years to resolve.  When watching the surveillance video through the eyes of a jaded retail wageslave who has seen about five hundred too many irate, unruly, aggressive, entitled customers come through the store, it's hard not to look at the footage and see Ellis' guilt dripping off of every frame of digital video.

 

Below I have provided the most complete video I could find of the surveillance footage, provided to YouTube by the Daily Dunklin Democrat, Kennet, Missouri's local paper.  It's a bit strange as it appears to be a video tape of a screen playing the video tape, but in a town of 11,000 I suppose there isn't always money on the budget for digital recording equipment.

 

Under the video I've written footnotes from the perspective of Betsy Walls, as well as some dialogue and the thoughts of a few others to explain some of what you're seeing.  Watch the video and stop it at the noted times to see the events occurring in real time with Betsy's thoughts.

0:10 Price Check on Marlboro Golds

 

I can't believe you're arguing with me over the price of cigarettes.  You're the one paying $6 a pack to kill yourself.  Watch for falling prices...and blackening lungs.  Ha!

 

0:25 - 0:33  Top Right, Scuffle Barely Visible

 

Oh now what the hell.  Come on ladies, is this really necessary?  Do we really need to make a stand about our positions in the line at Wal-Mart?  Do I need to designate someone as the frigging line leader here?  Go sit at your desks and put your heads down.

 

0:34 Onward

 

You know what?  Whatever.  I'm just gonna keep checking this stuff out.  You two have  your fight or whatever.  My job description as cashier is pretty clear about my duties, and acting as referee is definitely not one of them.

 

0:39 - 0:51 Ellis Pushes Kinder's Items Aside, Besty Grabs the Phone

 

Oh hell no.  You're gonna start doing this crap in my line?  I don't think so.  In fact, alright, you know what? I'm calling Kay.  Cause Kay is Kay and Kay don't play.

 

"I need a manager on aisle 6, please, manager on aisle 6.  

Thanks."

 

0:59 Betsy Resumes Her Work

 

Oh, you two get this worked out?  Good.  Back to work.

 

1:29 The Other Customers Ellis Cut Ahead of Begin Putting Their Items on the Belt.  Ellis Pushes Them Aside, Too.

 

Man, I love it when the good customers stand up to the bad.  Take that, lady!  Hey, watch this: they were here first, and I'm gonna check them out first!  Aw man, isn't that crazy?  Why would I do something like that?  

 

1:36 Betsy Points at the Line Behind Ellis.  Apparently Assistant Manager Kay McDaniel has Arrived on Scene.

 

"These people were here first, and that's the way I roll, Kay.  You know me.  This other one doesn't agree with the system."

 

2:01 Ellis Puts Her Stuff on the Belt and Appears to Demand She Be Checked Out.  Betsy Shakes Her Head.

 

"No, ma'am, I need to check out the customers who arrived before you.  See, there's this whole line system we use here.  We started using it when we realized it was more efficient than the elbow-your-way-to-the-cashier-with-your-stuff method that was traditionally used in days of yore.  So yea.  Them first, you later.  If Kay makes me."

 

2:12 Betsy Stares Incredulously

 

Wait a minute this was all over a box of cookies and some orange juice?  This is about some late night munchies?  Are you insane?  There's a freaking self checkout like ten feet away!  Why are you even in my line?!

 

2:16  Betsy Explains the Haps to Kay.  Kay Tells Betsy to Keep Checking Out the Other Customers.  

 

Kay: "Ma'am, you need to either go to the back of the line, or exit the store now."

 

Ellis: "Nuh uh!  I am a customer!  I'm always right!  I deserve to be at the front of the line because I wanted it more!"

 

Hell yea.  That's why I love Kay.  The other managers are such wusses when it comes to customers.  They pander to the worst of the cookie-purchasing cretins who roll through here.  Not Kay.  Kay's got balls.  Kay will tell 'em to get the hell out if they can't comply.  That should take care of that.  Back to work!

 

3:18 Besty Receives a Check

 

Ugh, a freaking check.  And I thought this night couldn't get worse.

 

3:24 - 3:51  The Check Takes Forever to Frank Because Checks Do That.  Checks Are So Annoying.  Seriously, People, Get a Debit Card.

 

4:05 Ellis Gets Belligerent Again

 

OMFG she's still here.  Just don't pay her any attention.  No eye contact.  Hey, this onion is really interesting.  4082, 4082, 4082...

 

4:11 Betsy Moves the O.J.

 

Alright lady, now I’ll scan the cookies and orange PSYCH!

 

Moments later, in the vestibule . . .

 

4:52 Ellis Schools the Officers on Their Technique

 

Ellis: "You can't tell me what to do!  I'm a customer!  I am a

superior creature!  I have both cookies and orange juice!  What

have you got, guns and badges?  Pfft."

 

4:55 Guy in Blue Tries to Pretend This Isn't Happening All

Around Him

 

Guy: This is why I freaking hate coming to Wal-Mart . . .

 

4:58 Cop Bringing Up the Rear Makes an Observation

 

Cop: You know, I think I might just be wider than that shopping cart.

 

Somewhere around 5:20 Ellis apparently assaults two of the officers.  While most likely a minor act such as pushing or poking them, the crime carries a hefty sentence.  According to Ellis, she didn't do anything.  Apparently they waited until they were out of frame, and then for no reason just grabbed her and dragged her to the car.  As though the perfect place to use unnecessary force is the parking lot of a Wal-Mart, with surveillance cameras and witnesses everywhere.

 

Now, the big buzz about this case was that the four crimes with which Ellis was charged -- disturbing the peace, resisting arrest, and two counts of assaulting an officer -- carried a combined total maximum sentence of fifteen years in prison.  There was a lot of outrage over this, as fifteen years sounds like a ridiculous amount of time to do for cutting in line.  Of course, now that she's pled guilty to "cutting in line," we see that her actual sentence turns out to be four days in county lock-up, one year of unsupervised probation, and an anger

management course.  The fifteen year sentence was actually for assaulting an officer, and while that's still a lot, I'm pretty sure everyone knows what they're getting into when they assault a cop.  

 

Of course, the other big deal here is that she's African American.  The public outcry in this department has been that, had she been a white customer, none of this would have happened in the first place.  I guess white customers let other white customers cut in front of them and never say anything about it, managers never say anything about it, and cops never arrest them for assaulting them afterward.  

 

No, this case has nothing to do with race.  This trial has been about a mean, belligerent customer acting in a typical childish fashion and expecting to be pandered to anyhow.  This is what corporate retail has done to our country's financial climate; the customer has been told that they are right in the face of hard evidence to the contrary so many times now that consumers are beginning to adopt an attitude that informs them of their privilege to do whatever they want in a store and get away with

it.  Then when a cashier refuses service to such a customer, the customer only grows more irate.  And when a manager tells them to leave, they explode.  

 

Is Heather Ellis a bad person?  No, probably not.  Does she have anger issues?  There's a good chance.  But is she not simply behaving in the manner that years of corporate retail babying have taught her to be when she plays the role of customer?  Has the system itself not instilled in her a sense of entitlement, of virtual legal immunity for one's actions

when one is the almighty customer?  I think that's exactly what's happened here, and Ellis and her many supporters are completely blindsided by a Wal-Mart staff with brass ones standing up and challenging that system.  Ultimately, both parties are both problem and solution by simultaneously supporting and opposing this system, and while Ellis can and should accept the responsibility, there can be no innocence

here.

 

Except for Betsy.  She seems cool.

 

 

 

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