Mikado

Being an ex investigator for Foley's Corporate here in Texas, I can strongly advise against this. Large corporate stores like department stores, Best Buy, Circuit City, etc have loss prevention departments within each store. Investigators like myself watch hundreds of cameras looking for anyone who's stupid enough to try and get that quick five-finger discount.

We even have investigators walking the floor who act like a typical customer. That's where I started, just browsing sections of the store looking for people trying to pull a fast one. Every one of those investigators has full authority to arrest and prosecute anyone in the store, and even anyone leaving the store.

I've been on hundreds of chases, one even involved the mounted patrol that worked the lot at the mall. We carry restraints, sometimes cuffs, just like any other police official. We work closely with county and city officials when it comes to prosecuting and arrests. It's really an interesting job, but we're not some rent-a-cop.

So don't push your luck if you try to get out of a store with stolen property. Chances are you'll be confronted and/or chased. However, there are some smaller retail chains like Hollywood Video, corner stores, etc that do inform their employees that they are never to pursue a suspect outside the building. Legal issues are involved when a store employee waives a person's civil rights by giving chase or attempting to apprehend a suspect. It's best advised to let them go and call the authorities.