L.I. Wal-Mart Employee Killed in Black Friday Stampede

First of all I gotta tell you that I used to work for some temp services

and they make you sign a paper saying that neither the temp service nor

the people you're being contracted out to are responsible for any injuries

you may recieve on the job, so this poor fellow's family, most likely did not

recieve a dime for their loss from either Wal-Mart of the employment

service he worked for.

Secondly, some of the places I've ended up at when I was contracted out

to working as a temp employee were pretty f-ed up people wise. One factory

I worked at the first thing I got from the forman on the job was him

pointing out my italian heiritage and saying that I "obviously partied

all my daddy's money and was broke and that's why I was there". For

the record I neither drink nor use drugs.

Thirdly, in order for someone like Wal-Mart or whatever company you're

contracted out to at the time said company has to pay the employment

service a said amount of money to buy out the contract so they can hire

you full time, one that I worked at wanted $1,000 to buy out my contract

bottom line being that most of the company you're contracted out to

only want you for cheap labor to catch up on their quota and then it's

"goodbye" and on to the next assignment, are we catching on so far?

It's just a new form of slavery with the empty promise of "40 acres

and a mule". What happened to this man was very wrong!!!

I am NOT trying to defend the people who trampled this poor man....but SOME of these people may have been being pushed through the doors by the people behind them and beside them...they may have had no choice but to step on this man or fall down....NOT that is makes up for what happened.

It's a shame that Black Friday had a 'body count'. I just heard that the sister of the man trampled is filing a wrongful death suit against Wal-mart and this shopping plaza and the police department (I guess for not protecting the staff)....

I do think it is sick that the customers were asked to leave the store but didn't due to their own materialistic greed....hope all their TVs, Stereo's, and iPod's blow up.....

I shop online instead. I'll go to http://www.Text2store.com

Its so disheartening as an American and Human Being to see people quick to point fingers, stereo-type and categorize people from a picture, a picture that I look at and

See many different racial backgrounds, some of which are so far in the distance you can’t make out their faces or “Color.” It boils down to common sense and bad decision making which many people suffer from, not race! No one looked at the pic and said wow there were a lot of young teens, those hoodlums! Instead it was easier to try and single out color. A pregnant lady was also trampled and lost her baby in this madness, common sense would have told me to stand back and let all the ruthless individuals go, because it just wasn’t that serious.

As for the racist stereo types and categorizing on here. I guess it makes some people feel better to point the finger and say, “See, it wasn’t us!” But that just shows a level of ignorance that no matter how much others try and make those individuals on here see that they are indeed “Racist” or at least their comments are, they won’t see it, so just leave them be, that’s something they need to come to terms with on their own, deal with their own demons and hatred. As for the Toys R Us shootings, for one I live in California and the shootings were not in “LA” they were in “Palm Desert, CA” 120 miles East of LA. Please read and research before you blurt out something you don’t even know! This happened in a community which is predominantly Latinos and Whites, second it was Gang related and the victims shot themselves, no innocent lives were lost! They released the names and ages of the victims and judging by the names they were of Latin origin, but I have yet to see video tape or pictures of ‘These People” so I am not one to judge or categorize until I know the facts, which many of you should take heed to.

Also, it was a mob of customers, you can’t single out 5 individuals and prosecute them for this, you would have to take the crowd as a whole, black, white, Latino, young, old, women, men, children, pregnant and all and prosecute them as a whole. No one or two people purposely trampled this man, this was a terrible incident, people used bad judgment because they were caught up in hype, it happens to a lot of people of ALL backgrounds. Last I checked idiot criminals came in all colors, so it’s easy to say these hoodlums were black, just like it’s easy to point the fingers and say majority of child molesters are white! But there’s a bigger picture here, someone lost their lives, so actions need to be put in place to prevent this from happening in the future, whether its in Beverly Hills or New York City! But here are too busy harboring hatred and ready to blurt out anything, so worried about money in others pockets and how their dressed, just like you have freedom of speech, they have freedom to wear what they want, buy what they want, and use their money however they want! Nobody tells you how to spend yours, if they’re buying plasmas and can’t afford food, so you say, then let them do it, its their right! And none of your concern.!

IGNORANCE COMES IN ALL COLORS….OBVIOUSLY!

"Let's be honest. This stampede would never happen at the opening of the Southampton Horse Show or the U.S. Open. "

It's called a culture of gentility and civility, certain demographics don't NEED excessive policing because they exhibit more SELF-control and moderation, the onus isn't on Wal-Mart to ASSUME these people would behave like animals. The onus is on the people to NOT behave like animals.

"The number of people who are taking the opportunity to display their racism is really disappointing. Racism is the ability to ignore a nationwide mortgage crisis and general financial crisis implicating people of every race and ethnicity and socioeconomic class. Violent, reckless consumerism is shared by anyone, everyone in the United States. "

Maybe we need to start telling it like it IS..sorry but how many of these stories do you have to read before we start taking the kid gloves off about the black underclass?

I hope a talented NY lawyer helps this man's family sue Walmart's ass off. That company goes way overboard with its loss prevention measures, but yet will not protect its own employees. I read a case where a Walmart had one of its employees arrested and prosecuted over pocketing a perfume tester and deodorant. They have security guards who just stand in back rooms watching surveillance cameras to see who is stealing. Why weren't these guards at the front door to control this crowd? Walmart = ultimate modern day robber barons.

As for the behavior of the savages who killed this man, I wish I could say I was shocked, but I have noticed that people seem to be getting more selfish and aggressive all the time, and I guess this is the level it has sadly reached. If these people would give up spending a major holiday at home with their families to sit in the cold waiting to buy cheaply made junk, I suppose it is not surprising that they would have so little regard for the life of a stranger.

#63 said...

Let's be honest. This stampede would never happen at the opening of the Southampton Horse Show or the U.S. Open.

----------------

You fail to mention that the he U.S. Open or Southampton Horse Show also do not carry bargains on HDTV's and iPOD's that are perceivably not to be missed.

I propose that anyone throw a brick of the purest nose candy into a mass of Stepfordian wives and observe the mayhem that would ensue.

Honestly though...

How petty we have become as people, that we are quick to chalk up ill mannered behavior to race alone when the real culprit at hand is the insatiable hunger for material supplement that the consumer based system has driven us to.

I weep for the future. Commercialism and materialism are additional factors ruining this nation.

"Though rumors circulated among the shoppers that someone had been badly injured, people ignored the Wal-Mart workers' requests that they stop shopping, move to the front of the store and exit, Cribbs said. "They kept shopping. It's not right. They're savages," Cribbs said."

---The store manager should have told NCPD officers on the scene to start arresting any customers who continued to shop after being told to leave.

If only the great leaders of our fair country knew about the comment section on gothamist!

Heads of state can then mine the great intellect displayed!

The folks here have all the answers to a very complex problem.

I applaud your tact and world view.

Keep up the good work.

douchebags.

The number of people who are taking the opportunity to display their racism is really disappointing. Racism is the ability to ignore a nationwide mortgage crisis and general financial crisis implicating people of every race and ethnicity and socioeconomic class. Violent, reckless consumerism is shared by anyone, everyone in the United States.

The trampled guy got a 20% discount on the length of his lifetime. What a deal!

Right on 69, this is more of a class and cultural issue then about race.

F&%$ all that.

The worst is that they complained that the store was closing . . . because someone was killed.

They wanted to keep shopping.

I'm sure one of the last images in that guys head when he died later were all the feet stepping over him to get big big savings.

This country has its head wedged deeply inside its @sshole.

Also, all you bitches griping about race . . you need to shut the fuck up and learn.

It's not race, it's class.

Class warfare. Period.

News flash, Being white (like me) doesn't save your ass. You're right there alongside the 'brothers and the others' as far as the elite 1% are concerned.

This is not about race. It's about what ALL the people of America have let ourselves become.

Wage slave fools.

Like Bush said 'Keep shopping.'

It's the ghetto trash people, what can you expect?

Who wins? Wal-Mart does. Not only do they get some free, heavy buzz about their sales, but they just got $250,000 from the death of their associate because they insure each associate and name themselves the sole beneficiary. Meanwhile, what the fuck is wrong out there in Long Island? Did every idiot in the Tri-State area suddenly move there? Get a grip, you pathetic suburbans.

wal-mart has surviellance cameras thru-out the store,the tapes should be reviewed and everyone who trampled this individual should be charged with murder and breaking and entering.after all the report says they broke the door down.

they are a bunch of non-caring assholes. and you know who you are!!!!!

Let's be honest. This stampede would never happen at the opening of the Southampton Horse Show or the U.S. Open.

What a bunch of maniacs. A big screen tv is more important than someone else's life to these animals.

hmmm, now what was written on that other post about Hasids in Bombay? that didn't take long to get.

didn't need a false central park jogger report.

Blame FEMA and reggaeton.

Or something.

@yellowfoot: no one would have believed her because it is more likely that a black man would steal your car. yes, you're right, most famous serial killers were white, and that's sick, and i think of that too whenever i'm on the train and see an average looking white guy and i wonder whether he's thinking what my head would look like mounted on his wall. so, see, i do it with white people too. it's NOT about the color of the skin, it's about what certain groups are known to do. it's about learned behavior from watching others in the same social group. people will make comments about priests molesting kids, or politicians paying for hookers and blow, because unfortunately history has taught us that these often go together. it doesn't mean it's the right behavior.

fact: most of the people waiting in line at that particular wal-mart were trashy. i am sure there were white people there, too. but i suspect that most of them were black or hispanic, based on the location of the store and the FUCKING PICTURE. THEY'RE BLACK AND HISPANIC. what do you want me to do about it? i'm sorry the black and hispanic people killed that dude (who was probably black or hispanic), but you can't call me a racist for pointing it out. they behaved just as savagely as those teen white kids from LI who killed the Hispanic man -- those kids are fuckers, too.

YOU and sizzle-pants are the ones making this about race. learn to have an adult conversation without playing the race card to get out of it. cowards.

right on rdsizzle I agree white people kill 90% of serial killers are white remember the white mom that drowned her kids in a lake and said a black man stole her car with her kids in it what a bitch she couldn't have said he was white no one would have believed her that's sick.

@blkiznewprez there is clearly a difference between voicing opinions and being raciest every time something bad happens there is bunch of people on here blaming it on hispanics and Black people even when race isn't even mentioned in the artical.

Shop to kill.

I am a white dude that has done all his Christmas shopping on line. If it will make all the leftist happy I will trample the UPS guy to death when he rings my door bell. And don't start telling me that some people can not afford to shop online. I got great prices and free delivery not to mention the tax savings.

#52, right on!

We gave arms and resources to Saddam during the Iran-Iraq war because we wanted to topple Iran, which had just deposed Pahlavi. Here are some chemical weapons, I hope you don't use them on any Kurds! We even supported the evil Islamist Ayatollah because we wanted them to destroy each other.

We didn't create the Baathist party but we did support them, along the with the Mujahedeen in Afghanistan and the Ayatollah.

Whoops!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._support_for_Iraq_during_the_Iran%E2%80%93Iraq_war

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._support_for_Iran_during_the_Iran%E2%80%93Iraq_war

Applauds blkiznewprez.

The white liberal inability (guilt) to recognize race is what causes racial conflict and tension. Until we can actually have a dialogue on racial differences and disparities without someone shrieking 'racist!!!!' we will get nowhere.

rdsizzle (my nizzle):

you have a problem with white people and owners of station wagons and golden retrievers. you feel pressured to buy ipods and wear whatever MTV says is in fashion, because you don't want people to think you're a loser. you think andrea yates, a woman rendered insane by post-partum depression, must've been black on the inside. and you cannot bear the thought of security cameras catching fucking animals in the act when they trample an innocent person or shoot at someone in Toys R Us. Who brings a gun to a toy store and shoots it? twice? and kills two people?

it's quite simple and obvious: you're probably a hoodlum too.

So much for the economy being in the tank. Guess the only people who could afford to shop for flat screens today are those who don't have to worry about losing their jobs because they don't have any -- that welfare check will always come, right on schedule.

Nassau County retail is a cesspool.

This is also extremely disconcerting, if this people were acting this way in getting these items IMAGINE the damage they will do when the Greatest Depression hits and there is barely any food or water.

It will be HELL ON EARTH.

Agreed. While I doubt there will be any lack of food or water, I hate to see what its like when/if we're at a 25% unemployment rate.

"So yes, unfortunately you are in title (sic) to you opinion...But mine is that you are a racist, judgmental asshole..."

that's fine, i already told you i'm not a racist, and i have no problem with anybody of ANY race or color who can behave like a decent and caring human being. you'd have to be a moron not to identify the people who were waiting in line to attack at this store. i'm sorry, the clothes might be "fashionable" but i can assure you that p diddy and kanye weren't willing to run someone over for a cheap laptop. so, no, it's not the clothes. it's the ATTITUDE that seems to attach to the people who wear the clothes. call me a racist if you want, but it's a reality.

btw, i'm not "in title" to an opinion, i'm ENTITLED to one, and my opinion is that you're a fucking uneducated moron who probably pushed some little kids today while racing to get your greedy hands on a cheap wii or something.

This people are lemmings and AMERICA AS A WHOLE (every race and ethnicity) has fallen towards this trap of consumerism and idiotic following of useless objects.

This is also extremely disconcerting, if this people were acting this way in getting these items IMAGINE the damage they will do when the Greatest Depression hits and there is barely any food or water.

It will be HELL ON EARTH.

#43/42 above has also written on this blog in the last 24 hours:

"Bin Laden and Saddam Hussein where {sic} monsters that we created. '

My friend, before you start your simplistic, crude and vulgar sermonizing about racism on this post, Google the 'Muslim Brotherhood' and the 'Baathist Party', and explain to us how the CIA was involved in their creation. Also learn the difference between "where" and "were".

That should keep you busy for a while.

just came back from bestbuy to see all the hullaballoo and laugh at all the people on line. Didn't buy anything but I noticed a lot of doorbusters still sitting there. This was at soho at 5:30. WOw! this economy is shit if stuff is still available on black friday.

"Now there is a shooting at at Toys R US in LA. I havent heard yet, but anyone wanna guess on the background of who did this. I assure you its not a 45 year old white suburban mother."

OMG you are an outright fucking biggot...pick up your KKK application and start burning them crosses redneck...

"Its too bad you cant run a check on these savages and see who has been arrested or has outstanding warrants. I bet its a lot."

Dude you should move to China or Russia; they give their government all the power to do that shit.

And didint some 45 year old white suburban women drown her 5 kids in a bathtub a few years back??? She must have really been black on the inside right because no white people commit crimes....

Fuckin useless moron....go home in your station wagon to your golden retriever....

"Now there is a shooting at at Toys R US in LA. I havent heard yet, but anyone wanna guess on the background of who did this. I assure you its not a 45 year old white suburban mother."

OMG you are an outright fucking biggot...pick up your KKK application and start burning them crosses redneck...

"Its too bad you cant run a check on these savages and see who has been arrested or has outstanding warrants. I bet its a lot."

Dude you should move to China or Russia; they give their government all the power to do that shit.

And didint some 45 year old white suburban women drown her 5 kids in a bathtub a few years back??? She must have really been black on the inside right because no white people commit crimes....

Fuckin useless moron....go home in your station wagon to your golden retriever....

If only Obongo would have flown in to save the day!

Also it's pretty funny that if this was in the midwest peoople here would be like "typical" but if it's in NY people are all like "it's not us, it's our blacks"

When will some of you nyers get your head of your asses and realize that people are idiots all over the country?

Do people need to shop the Friday after Thanksgiving? Is this some bizarre need in consumers? How about waiting a few days? I'm sure that with the economy the way it is, no store is going to run out of HDTVs, computers, game systems or crap clothing. If they do, they'll ship in more.

What happened is disgusting enough without the fact that people stepped over a helpless person just so they could load up on garbage items. The fact that they did trample this person is a disgrace and should haunt the ones who stepped over him for the rest of their lives.

With any hope, store cameras caught the faces of some of the people - at the very least they can plaster them on the very TVs they bought.

So in their bloodlust to score some cheap goods for Christmas, they murder someone in their path. Yep, they sure sound like well to do citizens. I cannot blame Walmart for the actions of these savages. Walmart wants to sell merchandise. If Walmart took extra measures the fucking ACLU would be so far up their asses crying racism and or some other type of bullshit. So they assumed the buying public would act like civilized humans. They made a fatal error in judgment. I hope Walmart has plenty of security footage to nail these pieces of shit.

"I have to accept the fact that I need to share my living area with people like the ones who trampled the Wal-Mart employee to death. I don't like them, and I don't agree with their life philosophy, their speech, their dress, or their illicit activities. I wish they would be removed from this country and I wish I didn't have to deal with their shit -- but I don't have the power to do that. I must accept it and move on. But I can still express how I feel about this tragedy."

You seem quite good at judging people from the look of a picture. From the picture I see its just black people wearing clothes that are in fashion...the clothes you see on MTV and popular movies. They are waiting outside a store to buy items legally; this is not a question of looting....

Anyways, we live in a world where the endless advertising and product placement makes it a must for some people to own these material goods. I’m not saying its right, but the system makes you feel like a looser for not having these goods or not being able to buy them for your kids. Once a year, these corporate giants have a ridiculous sale and literally hype up and encourage this "door crasher" non-sense. If you ask me the system is fucking broken.

And WTF is wall mart doing putting a greeter (who is probably 80 years old) in front of a crowd of people who are about to "crash the doors" as they are encouraging.

So yes, unfortunately you are in title to you opinion...But mine is that you are a racist, judgmental asshole...

Wow, I hope those @ssholes enjoy their flatscreen TV or Blu Ray DVD or whatever was worth trampling a man to death for.

sometimes i feel bad about the market crashing and people losing their jobs and not having any money, and then something like this happens and i just can't wait for it to hit rock bottom.

i hope everyone fulfilled their bloodlust for expensive electronics at low low prices. they're really going to need those boxes this winter.

I personally think the most disgusting part of this is the walmart statement that "the safety of our customers and associates is the top priority". I mean, really. You put everything in place to generate these kinds of scenes and then are surprised when they come to fruition. Granted, a store should not expect its customers to trample people, but putting up signs that say "Blitz Line" is only asking for trouble, let alone most probably making you liable for damages as well. There is absolutely no reason to setup the sales and hype in this manner.

Animals-each and every on of them.

you ain't seen nothing in the comments section,

wait till a CP jogger like wilding incident happens.

I don't know why people were offended at the Hasidim India post, that was tame.

Yellowfoot, i don't know why you think we should have our right to comment here removed merely because you take offense with some of the things you read. People have different opinions, and the great thing about living here is that we have to accept them even if we don't agree with them.

I have to accept the fact that I need to share my living area with people like the ones who trampled the Wal-Mart employee to death. I don't like them, and I don't agree with their life philosophy, their speech, their dress, or their illicit activities. I wish they would be removed from this country and I wish I didn't have to deal with their shit -- but I don't have the power to do that. I must accept it and move on. But I can still express how I feel about this tragedy.

I just cannot see what is so fucking important about grabbing a blueray disc player or an ipod or a plasma screen or whatever before anyone else gets to it. yes, you get a discount, but this isn't life or death. the fact that these people thought an MP3 player was more important than safety is evidence of their priorities.

I seem to recall the cabbage patch doll craze and theys ain't black. why? because there's only one black cabbage patch doll.

well since on one has bought a dam thing in 2 months and the last 4 or 5 black fridays have kind of sucked they prob assumed the turn out wouldn't be so big

Are these "people" savages?

it's a store, not a free giveaway to the first 100 to get in. What is the freaking rush to spend?

wow, this is awful.

this isn't the 1st black friday in history. how did this store let this happen?

no line, no organization, didn't management warn the employees that this might happen?

You don't have to be a holy roller to see that the real meaning of Christmas hasn't just been forgotten; it's been profaned and obliterated.

1) I'm not sure how someone could turn this into a race thing. Its really gross that some of you think that because no one knows who you are that you can just write what ever you want on here. Gothamist should really remove your abilities to comment.

2) none of you have any idea how much this people have to spend. 3) this is fucking awful i was at a wal-mart in L.I. today but i don't think it was this one because i heard nothing about this.

4) walmart is evil i am never going back there after today

babyhitler, i'm gonna have to agree with you. it's not being a racist, but a racialist -- you take cues from society and certain people's stereotypical behavior. it's a shame that we have to take this into consideration every day, but for me it is a way to survive. if i see a group of individuals fitting the hoodlum description, i steer clear. no matter their race, these people subscribe to a hoodlum mentality that is careless, aggressive, and materialistic. these people are intent on killing each other to grab plasma screens and other electronics that the average middle-class consumer cannot dream of buying in this economic situation. where are these people getting the money from? this xmas should be about the basics: health, family, food, and togetherness. hoodlums do not value this and so they need to fill the void with expensive crap. they are animals and they are the ones who brought down this society by trying to live above their means, and shit, they STILL haven't learned their lessons.

of course, i have seen many hoodlums at wal-mart, costco, sam's club and other places, filling up their carts with expensive meats, electronic gadgets, sound systems, plasma TVs, etc and then paying by peeling $50 and $100 bills from wads of cash. i want to know where these bastards are getting the money for this.

i'm disgusted.

#15 Good advice.

Billiamsburg wrote: "Black people LOOOOOVE to spend money they don't have"

Billiamsburg would LOOOOOVE to have a brain he doesn't have.

more proof this country is crazy. Damn im an american too. Not for long though ill be moving to a country not hell bent on fame keeping up with the jonses being the jonses and destroying itsself.a country with limited commercial interruption.

Freedom lol.

First of all Walmart has only itself to blame for hyping up that 5am start time, creating this tension.

Second of all, the racist comments on this post are disgusting. Americans of ALL COLORS have ruined the economy with their irresponsible spending.

What's sad is that people are ready to kill for a bargain, and more willing to send their flesh and blood to war than to save their money or spend it on worthy things like their own healthcare. We might as well kill people at sales -- that's what we're doing in the world anyway. Killing for a bargain.

Just curious, does KFC and Popeyes have Black Friday sales or would that cross the PC line?

Soon wal-mart will be the only place to buy anything.

They will change their name to "the store" and we will line up in line like so many soviets and wait for our government subsidized flat screen televisions. Well maybe we won't wait in line, but the rest, i predict, will be true.

Mob mentality can turn normally ordinary folks into complete idiots.

The life lesson I'm going to impart to you is full of wisdom. Never be around hoodlums. If I even see more than 2 hoodlums ahead in the street I cross it. It's served me well for the last 20 years. Now, if you see a mob of em and they have a sign that says "BLITZ LINE STARTS HERE" then you should be running very very fast away. Black, white, asian, hispanic, it doesn't matter. If they wear baggy oversized clothes and have hoodies on, get the fuck away.

Every Wal-Mart employee there should have walked off...

Oh, my bad.

The Wal-mart stampede, caught on camera

ridiculous*

Its stupid to single out black people from this incident as this happens ALL the time every Black friday all over the country. People get hurt, trampled, and sometimes killed. Its rediculous.

I will never go out and shop the day after Thanksgiving, and no one else should either if they had any common sense.

Dogs.

Oh the inhumanity.

"Black people LOOOOOVE to spend money they don't have"

Let me correct your sentence for you.

"Americans LOOOOOVE to spend money they don't have"

Much better. And far more accurate.

Where does it say black people? Why are you being racist?

What is wrong with people?

About six months from now, in State Court: "When the TV commercial stated the store was having 'doorbuster savings', my client naturally assumed they were serious."

"Buy Nothing Day" make a lot more sense now.

This makes me sad.

Seriously, this country needs a good nuking.