Dumpster diving at corporate stores like Target is not illegal. Despite claims to the contrary by former employees and others, many stores discard perfectly good merchandise and food, often still in its packaging. Target at Broadway and Palomar Streets in Chula Vista, California, is notably wasteful, throwing away new bicycles, ninja products, inflatable beds, and cold or frozen food.
One individual, who successfully defended themselves in court against related charges, argues that discarded items no longer belong to the store but to the taxpayers. They accuse stores of concealing this waste to avoid public backlash and highlight the discrepancy between corporate practices and the plight of the poor and homeless. They assert that trespassing and theft claims regarding dumpster diving are unfounded.
Here is the Ans from an user on quara: https://qr.ae/psDcCx
“”””””No. It is not illegal to dumpster dive at any of these corporate stores. To the former team member at target and the person who commented on her answer, you both sound like people who have bought all the bullshit rhetoric these companies and their security people and even the police impart on people like you all the time.
There is a Target located at Broadway and Palomar Streets in Chula Vista, California, and of all the stores in that area, Target was by far the worst offender ( or maybe neck and neck with CVS ) of throwing away perfectly good merchandise still in the box. Brand new bicicles and all kinds of bike parts like seats, tires and rims.
Ninjas, oh my god, ninjas, ninjas and more ninjas at least a $100 a piece. Coleman inflatable beds still in the boxes. And food!!! I can’t say here what I really want to say about the woman who used to work at Target w/o being censored by Quora moderators and have my response pulled, but I will say this.
Lady, you are either a liar or have no idea whatsoever what goes on at your place of work.
Large commercial grade plastic bags, the clear ones filled with food and tied off at the top mind you, still cold or frozen and before the date tossed ( per the little corporate stickers that say “toss” ) in the compactor.
I’m talking those boxes of meat that say “Jack Daniels” and “carnitas” on them. Packs of chicken breasts ( great big ones still frozen ), blocks of cheese, and Pizza Hut that sold food inside the store had personal pan pizzas, garlic bread, and the aluminum dishes with the pasta ( white and red sauces ) at least twice a day.
My entire neighborhood was eating well.
Shame on you people for trying to conceal this and prevent people from retrieving what is rightfully theirs.
Now, please allow me to educate your obviously uninformed asses on what the law is and what is really going on here. And I do know what I’m talking about because they tried taking me to court on this and the San Diego Prosecutors office being faced with getting their butts kicked in court at a trial withdrew the charges after a year and a half of trying to intimidate me into taking a plea bargin to which I steadfastly refused.
Toward the end, my attorney came to me and said, “look, they want you to take a plea, any plea, pick anyone you want,” to which my response was, “no deals here.” They finally withdrew all charges.
And it wasn’t like they lacked material evidence because I was claiming, “yes, I dumpster dive,” “ yes, I retrieve tons of perfectly good merchandise and food on a daily basis,” “ yes, I tell store employees and contracted security personnel to fuck off, go away and leave me alone,” all the while I continued to handle my business. And when the police showed up, I’d tell them the same even daring them to arrest me. After a few times of this they stopped showing up when they would call.
I ended up in court on a fabricated assault and battery on a security guard. Video showed the opposite, but I insisted on going to trial on the basis that I had the right to be there doing what I was doing.
You think I’m not telling the truth, I triple dog dare anyone to look up what is a matter of puglic record in the California court system in South Bay located in Chula Vista, San diego County and see if it isn’t true.
What do I base my argument on?
Stores “devalue” megatons of perfectly good food and mechandise for a variety of reasons. All of which is recorded in handheld inventory control devices. The information contained in these units is uploaded to corporate accountants who use this in writing off billions of dollars a year against corporate tax liabilities.
The merchandise in question must then be discarded. This is when a transfer of ownership takes place. Everything they throw out is no longer their property.
So who does it belong to?
The taxpayers of the United States of America, that’s who.
And to claim trespassing on private property ( which is actually private property – public access ), or to claim it is the property of the store or the refuse company is grand theft and/or receiving and concealing stolen property.
Furthermore, the reason these stores go to the lengths they do to conceal and keep people away from dumpsters and compactors is so it doesn’t become common knowledge just what they are up to.
The complaints of the poor and the homeless fall on deaf ears, however, the complaints of John Q. Public are something entirely different and something they surely don’t want to have to deal with.
So the claims made by these other people are nothing more than the innacurate ravings of uniformed lunatics.””””””
