Couple Accused of Shoplifting Strip Searched
Stripped of Dignity
Deadra Pattum picked up a pair of $3.00 earrings in Y Beauty Supply in Houston, Texas. Deciding not to purchase them, she placed them back on the counter. Surveillance footage confirmed that Pattum put the earrings back on the counter, but by the time that the security guard watched the video, Pattum and her fiancé John Marsden, were already violated. The store’s owner allegedly said “You people always steal.”
Intimidated and nervous, Marsden removed his socks, shoes and pants.
The security guard said “She never left the counter with those earrings in her hand. There was no evidence of shoplifting.”
Pattum and Marsden are now pushing to have the store’s owners charged with unlawful search. “Everybody doesn’t shoplift. Everybody is not a thief. There are still honest people in the world” stated Pattum.
Quanell X, an activist fighting racial profiling, gave a statement saying, “This was a classic case of racial profiling in its most humiliating form. And something needs to be done about this.”
The owners of the store have declined to comment on the racial profiling charges, only saying that shoplifting costs their store a lot of money.
What’s the wholesale price for earrings that retail for $3.00?
Posted on 07/10/2014, in Uncategorized and tagged Deadra Pattum, Houston, John Marsden, racial profiling, strip search, Texas, Y Beauty Supply. Bookmark the permalink. 44 Comments.
We Hold These Truths To Be Self-Evident 
It reads like he voluntarily removed shoes and socks and pants. The headline is misleading to the rest of the article.
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2dogsonly,
Depends on how you read it and personal perception.
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“Intimidated and nervous, Marsden removed his socks, shoes and pants.” Sounds like a strip search to me
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This is an outrage to anyone but especially minorities. 😦 I think it’s time we had laws to protect people.
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Jackie, good morning dear friend.
I agree that it’s time we had laws to protect people from this type of violation, but like many other behaviors, the criminal justice system tosses people in the civil court system where the only redress is monetary.
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it’s a small measure of something akin to justice. It’s the only thing some of these hateful folks understand
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Ugh! Behaving so badly, the way this store owner did, could end up costing him a lot more than $3.00
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I can’t find this in the news – can someone help me?
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when I googled Deadra’s name I had over 2500 results!
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http://www.wfaa.com/news/texas-news/Couple-strip-searched-over-3-earrings-at-Houston-beauty-supply.html
http://www.khou.com/news/local/Couple-strip-searched-over-3-earrings-at-southeast-Houston-beauty-supply-254843001.html
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strip searched and made to defecate in front of officers while handcuffed to a hospital bed
http://www.aclutx.org/2014/07/07/aclu-and-el-paso-hospital-settle-body-cavity-search-lawsuit-for-1-1-million/
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mindyme, thanks for the link.
And, she is 54 years old.
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I can’t even imagine the humiliation she endured.
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Mindyme, they no doubt gave her an enema or laxative. People who are ill and have to endure that in a hospital to get well lose a measure of dignity. To be wrongfully accused and forced to do that is devastating. The article reads that the hospital has now changed its policies. I suppose they don’t want to be told by LE what to do with people accused of a crime. As a hospital, their attention should be directed at patients — getting people well and saving lives — not body cavity searches over a period of 6 hours in effort to find evidence that doesn’t exist.
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What happened to the Hippocratic oath? This part: “I will follow that method of treatment which according to my ability and judgment, I consider for the benefit of my patient and abstain from whatever is harmful or mischievous”
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Mindyme, LE gives orders and doesn’t care about the oaths of physicians. Here in Illinois, there was controversy over the cops bringing DUI suspects to the hospital for blood tests. Hospital staff sees people as “patients” and they need a signed consent. Come to think about it, I’m not sure how that came out and need to research it.
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she attempted to return to the U.S. from Mexico via a bridge in El Paso. CBP agents frisked and strip-searched her.
Despite finding no contraband, they then transported her in handcuffs to the University Medical Center of El Paso, where doctors subjected her to an observed bowel movement, X-ray, speculum exam, rectal exam, vaginal exam, and a CT scan.
After a period of six hours of fruitless searches, the agents released the plaintiff without charge.
There have to be many others like her who are probably too traumatized, humility, and frightened to come forward and complain.
I bet the CBP agents in El Paso and maybe other places do this all the time. There needs to be an investigation and change in their operation.
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“humiliated”
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You’re right, I’m sure there are many many more who won’t/can’t complain.
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OMG!!!! Please tell me this isn’t true OMG!
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Reblogged this on It Is What It Is and commented:
SMH … “What’s the wholesale price for earrings that retail for $3.00?”
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Horty, good morning friend! Thanks for the reblog.
Yeah – wholesale was probably 50 cents.
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Hi there, dearest friend …. hugs!!
Hope you are doing better.
Yeah … seems we are living in increasingly difficult and unjust times!! 😦
Hugs!!
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Horty, yes — difficult and unjust. Now everyday citizens are playing cop.
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You know, this makes me sad … and disappointed!! This is not the world I grew up in or the one I envisioned in my future.
Now that we have grandkids, I wonder what they will experience. SMH ….
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Horty, our generation, when we were teens, lived with diversity. Thinking back, music brought many of us together. Before MTV and cable, there were programs of teens dancing to the music of various artists, and artists performing. There were movies, especially independent movies, that addressed freedom and equality. We were an informed generation and most of it came from the arts.
Before light reveals evil, evil must rear its ugly head. We have once again come to the Age of Aquarius. What we are missing now is the involvement of the arts like we had in the late 60’s and early 70’s.
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I so wish that songwriters, singers, and other artists were on the scene now helping to push back against the racial bigotry and the efforts of those in power to turn the clock back!
I agree with you, Xena, this is an important “partner” that we are lacking as we take up such causes as freedom and equality.
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Sounds like misuse of power to me.
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Hi Brenda! Your visits are truly appreciated and thanks so much for the comment. You have a wonderful blog.
The store owners have no law enforcement power. They can hold suspected shoplifters for the police, and that store apparently has a security guard. The owner didn’t wait for the security guard to watch the surveillance video before jumping to conclusions.
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Shop owners are just as liable to make mistakes, be racist or be jerks as anyone I guess. But it still sounds wrong to me.
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Yes Brenda, I agree. It sounds wrong because it is wrong.
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Yes, they were “stripped of their dignity” and falsely accused as they endured racial profiling and stereotyping. I hope they do sue!
Here is a news video on this.
“N the NEWS Y BEauty Supply in Southeast Houston, Texas strips searched couple over $3 earrings”
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From the article:
The store’s owner allegedly said “You people always steal.”
This unfair, negative stereotyping and profiling needs to end!
Even though it appears in the news video that the store owner is Asian, I thought now might be a good time for those of us who are White to consider what it would be like to always have stereotypical comments or just thoughtless, ignorant comments said to us.
The following video gives me as a White person a taste of what that might be like. (I imagine this video might give Blacks watching it a bit of comic relief.)
Here is the video:
“If Black People Said the Stuff White People Say”
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Yahtzee,
Those type of beauty supply stores are generally owned by people of Korean descent. They open the stores in areas that are predominately Black to sell ethnic products that are not found in retail stores neither beauty supply stores such as Sally’s.
Years ago when I was president of a Chamber of Commerce, I met several store owners of Korean descent. They are able to provide products at a low price because they organize to purchase large amounts that are then divided between their stores.
Those I met made a marketing error by opening shop in a predominately White area of town. They said that people walked in, saw them, and walked out without doing as much as looking at the products. So, they know what side their bread is buttered on.
For a people to be subject to such discrimination, who do maybe 90 if not 100% of their business with others who are subject to discrimination, one would think that there would be no racial profiling.
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Thank you, Xena, for this information that I would not have learned and known about because it is outside of my experience.
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“Classic case of racial stereotyping” yes it was!
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Reblogged this on The ObamaCrat™.
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Jueseppi, Good afternoon, friend. Thanks for the re-blog.
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Howdy my friend, good afternoon and have a great Thursday, keep fighting that good fight.
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How disgusting – and the comment OMG – I would own that store!!!
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I do not think that store will be in business after this. This one’s probably headed to Civil Court and the current owner will not like the results! We’re an incredibly racist country, although nice white people always deny this with a straight face.
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Celia,
What causes you to think that those who established and write for this blog, as well as participate here, are not “nice white people”?
Also, you say “racist country” but you’re in the Philippines.
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Uh oh:
Excerpt from
http://www.cnn.com/2014/07/10/justice/zimmerman-where-are-they-now/
Bill Lee
The ousted former Sanford, Florida, police chief, who took the brunt of criticism about how the initial investigation in the shooting was conducted, is now working as a special agent with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement’s Orlando Regional Operations Center Public Integrity Squad.
As an investigator, he looks into alleged misconduct of public officials, including in-custody deaths and officer-involved shootings. Lee is no longer a supervisor, but FDLE colleagues say he is a “tremendous asset” to the team.
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And that is why my husband doesn’t like to go shopping. Being followed by security and/or asked to see your receipt when leaving the store while others in front is humiliating enough.
Well, times are changing, and I wanted to share this with you. As some of you know, me (white grandma), my husband (black grandpa) are raising our grandson Moonshadow (Native American Indian.) He is 5yrs old now and I am getting ready to register him in school. I was looking up some information for the school his is suppose to attend, and was quite surprised. We live in Calif.
All Students 667
Ethnic Subgroups
African American 3
American Indian or Alaskan Native 1
Asian 1
Filipino 2
Hispanic or Latino 633
White (not Hispanic) 20
Two or More Races 2
Out of the 667 students, 341 are enrolled as English Learners
Well, if I were one of those KKKer’s, I’d be pretty horrified. I thought maybe it’s the area in which we live, but looking at the state figures, it isn’t so.
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