Chapter 194
Daisy checked Val in for bail.
Val walked out the front door of the police station with his head hanging down.
Luke’s grandfather Robert was waiting outside the gate, and he was the one who paid the bail.
There weren’t many people in the United States who could come up with tens of thousands of dollars in bail money all at once, and Robert was still very powerful.
Val sighed, not daring to look at his father, “SORRY, I screwed up again ……”
Imagining that the storm wasn’t coming, Robert patted Val on the shoulder, the
“It’s not your fault, it’s what’s wrong with this society, everything is measured in terms of money, and things that should be serious are mud-slinging.
In the end it’s the judiciary’s inaction that brought out the bullshit zero dollar purchase, a bunch of lazy bastards on the taxpayers’ dime, they’re the ones to blame for this, they’re the ones who condone the crime.
You’re just doing your job.”
Instead of blaming Val this time, Robert acknowledged his behavior.
Robert was a little angry at first when he heard about the incident and instinctively wanted to punch his son, thinking that the boy was in trouble again.
However, he was surprised to learn that his son was now working in a supermarket, because from what he knew of Val, there was no way that this kid could have gone to a supermarket as a shopper with a low eye.
It was a huge change for Val, in a good way.
As a father, he would love to see a similar change in Val.
Of course, it’s not that Robert supports hitting, he also feels that hitting is wrong and as a supermarket employee hitting in the workplace during working hours is a sign of immaturity.
It could pose some risk to the company.
But Val’s situation is different.
Robert knows his son, it is already a great change for him to work in a supermarket, and if he does not go to support him at this time, then there may not be any chance of change in the future.
The question for Val now is not whether he can do it well, but whether he will go and do it.
As long as Val is willing to do, Robert will encourage him, instead of accusing him of all kinds of faults, in the initial stage to hit his enthusiasm, according to Val’s character will certainly return to the norm of laziness.
At that time, it would not be a question of whether or not he could do well, but Val would simply give up.
Val froze, staring at his dad with wide eyes, the first time in years that his dad had encouraged him.
Val was worried that his dad didn’t understand the situation yet, “Dad, while it’s true that the asshole started it, I did punch him and was falsely accused of willful injury.”
Robert said, “I know, those kind of assholes who rob supermarkets are really hateful, if it were me, I would probably do that too.
Besides, no one can start out good, if you’re willing to do it and learn, I’m sure it will get better.”
Val’s eyes reddened and he was a little touched.
Having gained his dad’s approval, he felt that it had been worth the effort all this time.
Linda laughed, “What a picture of father-son love, I haven’t seen it in a long time.
No, it’s never been seen before.”
Robert smiled and looked over at the brunette next to Luke, “Hey, you must be Daisy.
Prettier than I expected, thanks for coming over to help Val.”
Daisy said, “Luke talks about Grandpa a lot too, that he’s a cool old man with money.”
“Oh, I like that analogy, it’s very graphic.”
Linda glanced at her watch, “I haven’t eaten since lunch and I’m starving.
I suggest we change places and fill our stomachs before we discuss Val’s business.”
Luke then looked for a fast food restaurant.
In the private room Luke once again solemnly asked, “Val, there are no outsiders here, honestly, are you sure that the other party started it?”
“Of course, I’m sure. He was the one who choked me first, I know the seriousness of this matter and won’t lie about such issues.”
Luke nodded, “OK, then after dinner, let’s talk to the person in charge of that supermarket.”
Val was a little hesitant, “The beating has nothing to do with the supermarket, it was entirely my own behavior.”
Daisy interrupted Val: “I still say the same thing before, you are an employee of the supermarket, and the place where you beat up the people is also in the supermarket, no matter whether it is out of the authorization of the supermarket or not, this matter they have joint responsibility.
It’s not something you can carry off just because you want to.”
Val was a little worried, “Will I lose this job if I find the supermarket ……?”
Daisy said, “We didn’t find the supermarket to find trouble, but to face the solution together.
Avoidance is not a solution to the problem, since the supermarket has been involved.
Only through timely communication and the formation of a unified consensus between both sides can we better solve this problem.
In addition, if this matter is not resolved, even if you carry it on your own, you will lose your job in the supermarket just the same.
If you are characterized as intentional injury during working hours and in the workplace, by then, not to mention this supermarket, other supermarkets, and even other companies in other industries may not dare to take you.
So the problem now is not to think about your job, but to do your best to prove that your actions were self-defense.”
The credit system in the United States is still awesome.
Why are there so many homeless people in America? Are they all poor and can’t afford to rent an apartment?
Not necessarily.
Being poor is only one aspect.
Some people have a hard time renting an apartment even when the economy improves and they have some money.
The reason is most likely that they have defaulted on rent in the past, and it only takes one default on rent to be recorded in the credit system.
All landlords can be checked.
Basically, all landlords will check the credit history of their clients before renting out their homes, and once they have a record of defaulting on rent payments, many landlords would rather leave them vacant than rent to such people.
In this regard, the United States is still doing well, and the interests of both landlords and tenants can be somewhat protected.
This is also the reason why many middle-class Americans have fallen flat on their faces. Once there is a problem on the economic front and there is a record of one default, his overall credit will take a hit, which is cascading, and a lot of simple things that were originally done will become very difficult, and it will be even more difficult for him to turn over a new leaf.
In other words, if Val was convicted because of this incident, finding a job in the future would become a luxury for him.
Robert also realized the seriousness of the problem: “Since Luke and Daisy both said so, then go, there’s nothing to hesitate about.
Although you have brought some trouble to the mall, it is likewise for the sake of maintaining the mall’s interests. From another perspective, the mall also needs responsible employees like you.
If every employee was as responsible as you, there wouldn’t be the so-called zero-dollar purchases, not to mention the introduction of similar absurd legal measures.”
Robert patted his son’s shoulder, “Val, be tough, straighten up like a man, you didn’t do anything wrong.
I’ll be behind you.”
Val was a bit touched and nodded, “I know.”
Robert shook his head and continued to exhort, “No, you don’t understand, you must hold your head high when you enter the supermarket, and when the employees in the supermarket look at you, you must meet them without fear.
Yes, show all the employees that you did nothing wrong and that you are a hero.
On the contrary, if you go to the supermarket with your head hanging down and fearful, you will instead make the employees look down on you and think that you are the one who did wrong and they are the ones who are right.
That’s just the way this shit world is, mostly snobs.”
Val looked up and responded loudly, “I see.”
Robert gave a thumbs up, “Good, I’m proud of how you’ve grown.”
Figueroa Supermarket.
Val walked into the supermarket with his head held high and Luke and Daisy behind him.
Many of the employees saw him, some nodded their heads in greeting, some showed surprise, and others exchanged pleasantries.
A black supervisor in uniform came over, “Val, are you okay.”
“Uh, I’ve just been bailed out for the time being.”
The black supervisor shook his head and sighed, “You were too impulsive.”
Val was going to admit his mistake, but thought about what his dad said and didn’t respond.
Daisy said, “Hi, I’m Val’s lawyer, what’s your name?”
“I’m Thomas, the supervisor of the supermarket.”
“We would like to see the supervisor of the supermarket to talk about Val.”
Thomas, the black supervisor, looked at Daisy and then at Val, “Okay, you guys hold on.”
The black supervisor pulled out his cell phone to make contact.
After a while, hung up his cell phone and waved, “Come with me, the general manager is waiting for you in his office.”
Soon, the group arrived at the general manager’s office.
The general manager was a white middle-aged man, not tall, big back hair, wearing a black suit, looking very sophisticated.
The man stood up, invited the group to sit on the sofa next to the coffee table, and introduced himself, “I’m the manager here, Cato Portia, you’re Val, right, I have an impression of you.”
And then he looked over at Luke and Daisy, “What are your names? Which one is Val’s lawyer?”
Daisy said, “I’m Val’s attorney Daisy, he’s Val’s family.”
General Manager Cato said to the black supervisor who stepped aside, “Thomas, coffee for the guests, please.”
When Thomas left, General Manager Cato asked, “Val, what’s the situation now? What is the purpose of your visit to me?”
Daisy briefly introduced some of the situation and turned her words around, “Val is an employee of the supermarket, and he clashed with the suspect in order to protect the supermarket’s property.
He belonged to self-defense, and I wanted to ask the supermarket how they plan to handle this matter.”
Katu pondered for a moment, “Personally, I sympathize and support Val.
However, from the supermarket’s point of view, it’s not convenient for us to be directly involved in the case, otherwise the suspect will most likely be sued along with the supermarket.
Once the supermarket becomes the defendant, the compensation will probably be astronomical.
So I hope that this matter will be resolved by Val personally, of course, he is an employee of the supermarket, we won’t give up on him, we will give some support behind the scenes.”
Daisy would not be easily fooled, “What kind of support will the supermarket provide.”
Cato thought for a moment, “Moral and financial.”
“That’s too general, I think we should talk about the specifics of the agreement.” Daisy took out a paper and pen and made a show of listening.
Cato glanced at Val and continued, “We’re willing to offer Val full attorney’s fees as long as it can be proven that he acted in self-defense and, at the same time, compensation in the form of a paid vacation package during that time.”
Daisy asked back, “What if he can’t prove self-defense?”
“If he wasn’t acting in self-defense, then his actions have nothing to do with the supermarket and there’s nothing more we can do to help him.
Supermarkets have their difficulties, so I hope you can understand.”
Daisy looked at Val, who looked confused and had no clear expression.
Daisy looked at Luke again, who nodded slightly.
Daisy said, “We agree to this agreement, but it has to be in writing, otherwise my client’s interests cannot be guaranteed.
There is also another clause to be added that if my client was acting in self-defense, the supermarket side may not dismiss him on that basis afterwards.”
“No No, I can only agree verbally, there’s no way to sign a specific agreement.” Cato resisted a little, clearly not wanting to take on more responsibility.
Daisy shook her head, “You think the supermarket side can stay out of this?
Impossible!
Earlier, when we talked to the suspect about a settlement, the other party mouthed off about the supermarket.
The fundamental reason why the suspect framed Val was to get compensation from the supermarket.
From this perspective, Val is taking the blame for the supermarket.
The supermarket and Val now belong to the category of one glory and one loss.”
Cato fell silent, rubbing his chin with a thoughtful expression.
Daisy continued, “Don’t think that you signed an agreement to get involved in this case.
From the moment the suspect robbed the supermarket, the supermarket was already involved in this case.
Only if you guys give Val enough support will he be willing to charge ahead without reservation.
If the supermarket can’t even do that, then when we talk about settlement, we will no longer take into account the interests of the supermarket’s side, but only my client’s personal interests.”
Daisy added, “We’re a team now, I hope you understand that.”
Cato sighed lightly, what this beautiful lawyer said had some truth to it, it was indeed difficult for the supermarket to stay out of this matter.
In addition, he was more worried that if the supermarket really skimmed too clearly with Val, it could certainly not be held jointly and severally liable, but it might affect the employees’ motivation and sense of responsibility.
When zero-dollar purchases occur again, not to mention blocking them, the employees may be watching from the sidelines.
Once this situation occurs, it will be terrible.
“OK, I can sign an agreement on behalf of the supermarket, as long as Val belongs to self-defense, the supermarket side will bear all the expenses related to the case in full, and at the same time Val belongs to paid leave during this period.”
Daisy looked at Luke and then at Val and saw that both were fine with it, “OK, I’ll draft the agreement.”
“Knock, knock ……” the office door slammed.
Cato said, “Come in.”
The black supervisor walked in, holding a tray with four cups of coffee.
“Thomas, good work.”
“You’re welcome.” Thomas distributed the coffee to the crowd.
Normally, this kind of work was not required of him, but today was different, it was less convenient to involve too many people in this kind of occasion.
Luke took a sip of coffee, “Does the supermarket have a surveillance backup? I want to see the surveillance video.”
Cato said, “After the incident, the police officer in charge of the case took away a copy of the video, and I’ve also seen the surveillance video, and it’s true that it didn’t capture any footage of the confrontation between Val and the robber.”
Luke said, “Just because you can’t see it doesn’t mean there are no clues.”
Cato reminded, “I’m not the only one, the police have seen it too.”
Luke flashed his badge, “I’m a lieutenant in the Robbery-Murder Division, and as far as investigating cases goes, the Robbery-Murder Division is the leader in the entire LAPD.
If there’s any unsolved cases in Los Angeles, I’m the one most likely to solve the case.”
“Wow. ……”
Cato laughed and leaned back toward the couch, this guy ……
really can brag.
However, the Robbery and Murder Division is really quite bluffing, and since he can be a vice-captain, he should have some tricks up his sleeve as well.
I didn’t expect this guy Val to have this relationship.
Cato took out his laptop from the table and clicked on a video, “Please watch.”
Luke began to view the videos, the first video was of the suspect Harbot entering the supermarket, he pushed a shopping cart and began to grab items in the supermarket.
Of course, there were a number of surveillance dead spots where it was impossible to see the robber’s every move.
In the surveillance, Luke also sees Val, with the other man clearly showing his displeasure.
After taking the items, the suspect used a calculator to do the math, and then pushed the shopping cart out of the supermarket and walked into the blind area.
At this point, Val caught up with him.
Because it was a blind spot, the images afterward could no longer be seen, but from the reaction of the surrounding crowd, the two should have clashed.
Daisy, knowing Luke to his ability, asked, “Any luck?”
Luke asked rhetorically, “Can it help get Val off the hook if it turns the suspect’s misdemeanor into a felony?”
Daisy thought for a moment, “Sure. There’s a big difference in sentencing between a misdemeanor and a felony.
If we can have evidence that convicts the suspect of a felony, I believe the suspect should be more than willing to talk to us about a settlement.
We don’t submit evidence of a felony, he admits that Val was acting in self-defense, both sides reach a private understanding, and the matter is settled.”
Cato said, “We checked and the suspect’s robbery was only $940, which doesn’t meet the criteria for a felony.”
Luke pointed to the suspect in the video, “What if we add these shoes?”
Seeing the crowd looking over, Luke continued, “I carefully compared the video of the suspect entering and leaving the supermarket, and although he was wearing black shoes, the patterns of the two pairs of shoes were different.
If you look closely you will see that the shoes he left with have gray horizontal stripes on the side.
My guess is that the suspect should have changed his shoes after entering the supermarket, only that the two pairs of shoes were similar in color, plus the video in the surveillance was not very clear, so neither the police nor the supermarket noticed it.
In addition, the suspect himself may have forgotten this and did not include the shoes in his calculation of the items.
If you add the value of the shoes, the items he stole would have been over $950.
It is a felony!”
The two pairs of shoes were similar in color and style, which meant that Luke’s observation power was far beyond normal people, and it was hard for ordinary people to see the difference at a glance.
Hearing Luke to the words, Cato rushed to the laptop, local zoom, carefully compare the video, his face showed a look of surprise: “It’s still true, why didn’t those patrolmen find out?”
Luke thought to himself, if every cop was as good as me, California wouldn’t have such a ridiculous law as zero-dollar purchase.
Val said with a proud look on his face, “My nephew has solved a lot of big cases, it’s no match for those patrolmen.”
Cato said, “Actually, I have another idea. Can we turn over the evidence to the police and convict the suspect of a felony.”
Daisy said, “It’s possible.
But then there would be no way to reach a private settlement with the suspect, and the other party could still sue Val for willful injury.
Under California law, the maximum likelihood would be both going to jail, and the suspect could still file a civil claim against the supermarket.
Does that do the supermarket any good?”
Cato thought about it, but he didn’t hide it, just like Daisy said, the relationship between the supermarket and Val now belongs to one and the same: “I hope to convict the suspect of a felony, it’s kind of a lesson, and it’s more of a warning to the other zero-dollar shoppers.
Zero-dollar purchases happen every week in our supermarkets, and it doesn’t just affect the normal work of the supermarket, it affects the customers’ shopping as well.
Although it can be reported to the insurance afterwards, the supermarket will likewise suffer some losses.
Not only Val, I am just as disgusted with these zero-dollar purchases.
We spend a fortune on insurance alone every year. I don’t want to let the suspect off so easily, I want him to go to jail.
I’m sure this is a warning to other zero dollar purchases as well.
At the very least, they will think about what will happen to this suspect before they make a zero-dollar purchase.
To take a step back, even if they choose to buy at zero-dollar, they won’t dare to choose our supermarket so easily, and may choose other supermarkets.
It means a lot to Figaro Supermarket.”
Luke understood Cato’s idea, but he wasn’t very interested.
He was only here for his uncle, as for the long-term interests of the supermarket it was none of his business.
Daisy said, “I can understand your feelings, but like I said earlier, if evidence is presented, even if it makes the suspect’s misdemeanor a felony, it still won’t prove that Val was acting in self-defense.
It’s technically two cases.
Reconciliation is the only way to win.”
Cato looked aside to Luke, “You’re the Lieutenant of the Robbery and Murder Division, you can see the suspect’s problem at a glance, there should be other aspects that prove Val was in self-defense, right?”
Luke said, “Didn’t Attorney Daisy say so? With the evidence just now you can get the suspect to reach a settlement. And why bother looking for other evidence?”
Cato said, “Of course it’s necessary, this suspect robbed more than $950, it’s a felony that can be convicted, if a settlement is reached, it’s like indirectly letting him off a yard.
Besides, a felony conviction for him would help the supermarket a lot.”
Luke laughed, “First of all, I’m not in charge of the investigation of this case, whether the suspect is a misdemeanor or a felony has nothing to do with me, all I care about is Val’s well-being.
As for the interests of your supermarket it is even more irrelevant to me.
To add one more sentence, if your supermarket gets involved with me, at that time, this supermarket will not be at the mercy of you, the general manager.
Rather, it will be taken over by me.”
Cato could hear it, this vice captain of the Robbery and Murder Division obviously didn’t take himself seriously.
People didn’t say whether they could find out or not, but they didn’t want to waste that time.
Instead of getting angry, Cato grew more amiable and smiled, “What is your name?”
“Luke.”
“Lieutenant Luke, on behalf of Figaro Supermarket, I would like to ask for your help in investigating this case.”
Luke held out two fingers, “It’s not one case, it’s two.”
“That’s right, you’ve found evidence to convict the suspect of a felony, and I’m sure you can find evidence of Val’s self-defense as well.
I would like to hire you as a security consultant for the supermarket and ask you to help me investigate the evidence. I am very sincere.”
Luke said, “What sincerity be more specific?”
Cato proposed after a brief thought, “If you can convict the suspect of a felony and prove that Val was acting in self-defense, the supermarket is willing to pay you $30,000 as a consultant.”
Luke smiled, that was a lot faster money than checking out cases at the Robbery and Murder Division.
The money he had saved was almost enough to consider buying a house.