Wal-Mart employee trampled during sale
Ann Givens
Issue date: 12/4/08 Section: Nation & World News
NEW YORK (MCT) - Trampling a Wal-Mart employee in a rush to buy a cheap flat-screen television is ugly behavior by any standard, but experts disagree about whether it is criminal.
A spokesman for Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice in New York would not comment on whether her office is considering criminal charges against any of the shoppers who trampled Jdimytai Damour. Damour, of the Jamaica neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens, was stampeded as the doors opened on a Black Friday sale at the Wal-Mart in Valley Stream, N.Y. Police say they are continuing to investigate the matter.
But some experts say criminal charges are possible, depending on how the investigation develops.
Bringing criminal charges against Wal-Mart customers would be complicated, lawyers and experts said.
"In order to prosecute a homicide, you have to establish that someone caused a death," said defense lawyer Oscar Holt of Mineola, N.Y. "If I stepped on his arm, or chest, or leg, even if you have that on video, how are you going to establish that I caused his death?"
It could also be difficult because the people trampling Damour may have been pushed by people behind them, and those people may have been unaware that he was being hurt, said defense lawyer Bruce Barket of Garden City, N.Y.
It would be different if surveillance videos or witness accounts show someone threw Damour to the ground, or someone made a choice to step on him rather than walk around him, just to make better time getting into the store, said defense lawyer John Lewis of Farmingdale.
"The video is going to be the deciding factor," he said.
The legal threshold to hold Wal-Mart responsible in civil court is lower, requiring simple negligence and not gross criminal negligence. Damour's three sisters have hired a lawyer, Jordan Hecht of the New York borough of Manhattan, who said Monday that he is looking into a lawsuit.
"We will continue to partner closely with Nassau County law enforcement officials as they conduct their investigation," said Wal-Mart senior vice president Hank Mullany in a statement. "Nothing is more important to us than providing a safe and secure shopping environment for our customers and associates."
A spokesman for Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice in New York would not comment on whether her office is considering criminal charges against any of the shoppers who trampled Jdimytai Damour. Damour, of the Jamaica neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens, was stampeded as the doors opened on a Black Friday sale at the Wal-Mart in Valley Stream, N.Y. Police say they are continuing to investigate the matter.
But some experts say criminal charges are possible, depending on how the investigation develops.
Bringing criminal charges against Wal-Mart customers would be complicated, lawyers and experts said.
"In order to prosecute a homicide, you have to establish that someone caused a death," said defense lawyer Oscar Holt of Mineola, N.Y. "If I stepped on his arm, or chest, or leg, even if you have that on video, how are you going to establish that I caused his death?"
It could also be difficult because the people trampling Damour may have been pushed by people behind them, and those people may have been unaware that he was being hurt, said defense lawyer Bruce Barket of Garden City, N.Y.
It would be different if surveillance videos or witness accounts show someone threw Damour to the ground, or someone made a choice to step on him rather than walk around him, just to make better time getting into the store, said defense lawyer John Lewis of Farmingdale.
"The video is going to be the deciding factor," he said.
The legal threshold to hold Wal-Mart responsible in civil court is lower, requiring simple negligence and not gross criminal negligence. Damour's three sisters have hired a lawyer, Jordan Hecht of the New York borough of Manhattan, who said Monday that he is looking into a lawsuit.
"We will continue to partner closely with Nassau County law enforcement officials as they conduct their investigation," said Wal-Mart senior vice president Hank Mullany in a statement. "Nothing is more important to us than providing a safe and secure shopping environment for our customers and associates."
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