Saw Someone Chowing Down in a Missouri Walmart – Is That Legal?

I am faced with a dilemma. I saw something happen at a Missouri Walmart that could have been a crime in progress or was it? It involved a food choice and timing. Let's explore whether I saw a bandit or not.

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Here's what happened. I was in a Missouri Walmart (which shall remain nameless) and saw something happen. It was a person pushing a cart through the grocery section where it was obvious that they became hungry.

I saw a person pick something off the shelf, open the box and start chowing down. It was none of my business so I didn't dare intervene, but it did make me wonder...did I witness a crime? I found out it's way more complicated than I thought.

Is eating food in a store before you've paid for it a crime?

The website Find Law explored the topic of whether it's legal to open bags of food and eat it before you get to the checkout. Here's how they broke it down. For someone to legally be shoplifting, they have to take something that isn't theirs and intentionally (or practically) deny the rightful owner the cost of the item.

Here's where it gets dicey. The article points out that for someone who's opened a bag of potato chips that has a fixed price, it's likely OK as long as they show the bag to the cashier and pay for it before leaving the store. If they eat fruit that is sold by weight though, then it's impossible to determine what they should pay.

They also point out that some areas allow shop owners (like a Walmart manager) to do a shoplifting search of a person if they believe there is evidence that a crime is happening. Don't you love legal grey areas?

I have people I know who don't have any problem snacking while they shop and they always pay at the cashier checkout and don't think anything of it. It's not common, but it does happen and by definition they aren't shoplifting. I normally give people the benefit of the doubt, but perhaps I'm just a bit too naïve.