DETROIT — A judge in Michigan turned down a plan to make Walmart shoplifters wash cars as a punishment for their minor crime.
A judge named Jeffrey Clothier gave the strange sentence. He has only been on the 67th District Court in Genesee County for a few months. He said that letting shoplifters wash cars for free would help the neighborhood and might make other people less likely to steal from the big store.
But Chief Judge William Crawford II disagreed and said the junior judge should have first asked him and other court officials for permission.
This is especially true when the suggested alternative punishment is different from what is normally done,” Crawford said in a statement Friday. He also said that “Walmart Washes” would not happen as reported.
Clothier got a lot of attention in February when he told The Associated Press that he was telling 75 to 100 store thieves to go back to Grand Blanc Township, which is close to Flint, and wash cars for free when spring comes.
He said that shop managers in the area agreed with him. But when Walmart headquarters in Arkansas heard about the plan, they told him they didn’t want the car washes to be on store property.
The judge wasn’t scared and thought he would just find another place to put the soap, water, buckets, and towels. The car wash is now over, though, thanks to Crawford’s order.
Clothier told him, “I’m angry.” “I’m still going to think of a creative way to resolve this issue.” I had 37 new thefts at Walmart two days ago. It’s been well over 100 in the past month.
He said that 20 to 30 judges from Michigan had promised to join him and the shoplifters in the bucket brigade after hearing about the car wash.
Clothing said that he is no longer ordering car washes as a type of community work in the Walmart cases.
