New York, NY (12/01/08)- An advocacy group for retail and food chain employees has launched an online petition calling for a criminal investigation of Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and its senior executives in the trampling death of a store worker on Black Friday. Brandworkers International is urging Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice to assess whether Wal-Mart's recklessness rose to the level of criminality in the killing of worker, Jdimytai Damour. The petition is available on the Brandworkers website at http://www.brandworkers.org/en/node/45280
"Wal-Mart's marketing strategy and advertising blitz stimulated the Black Friday frenzy at its Valley Stream location," said Daniel Gross, the founding director of Brandworkers. "Though the potential of a stampede was fully predictable, the company and its executives failed to implement a responsible security plan."
The petition text follows:
Dear District Attorney Kathleen Rice,
We urge you to initiate a criminal investigation of Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and its senior executives in the trampling death of Jdimytai Damour on November 28, 2008 in Nassau County.
We understand that Wal-Mart's marketing and advertising strategies for this and previous Black Fridays were designed to stoke frenzied demand and directly or indirectly encouraged large crowds to barrel into stores at opening time. It is our further understanding that Wal-Mart failed to utilize an adequate security plan to deal with the strong possibility that a large crowd would stampede into its Valley Stream location resulting in serious injury or death to workers or customers.
We specifically urge you to investigate Wal-Mart and its senior executives in light of New York State's manslaughter law, criminally negligent homicide law, and reckless endangerment law, among other laws.
I would greatly appreciate your prompt attention to this senseless loss of human life. Thank you.
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