Thanksgiving Day shopping 2.JPG

The crowd outside Macy's at Destiny USA before it opened on Thanksgiving, in this November 2015 file photo.

(Kevin Tampone | ktampone@syracuse.com)

New York City, NY -- A state judge has barred Macy's from demanding money from suspected shoplifters before letting them go.

New York law allows stores to temporarily detain suspected shoplifters for a reasonable time to investigate, the New York Law Journal reported. Retailers are allowed to ask a shoplifter for up to five times the amount of the stolen merchandise, up to $500, the Law Journal reported.

But state Supreme Court Justice Manuel Mendez ruled this month that Macy's was abusing those powers.

"Macy's has combined the power it was given under the statutes by using this power as a double-edged sword instead of a shield," Mendez wrote in his decision.

It's an issue -- albeit at Lord & Taylor -- that played out in perhaps Syracuse's most famous shoplifting case: the detention of Syracuse University basketball star Michael Carter-Williams in 2012. He was let go after admitting to the theft and paying a fine to the store.

The present case involves a New York City woman, Cinthia Orellana, accused of shoplifting two shirts. She says Macy's forced her to sign a confession and pay money before letting her go.

"A suspected shoplifter is given no opportunity to otherwise object, have a hearing, or receive guidance from counsel before signing a confession" and agreeing to pay the penalty, the judge noted.

The woman's attorneys said that, in addition, Macy's gave the impression that signing the confession meant the suspect could leave. But instead, Macy's loss prevention officers called police.

The problem with all that is that suspected shoplifters must pay money and confess before being let go, without knowing their rights and without being found guilty of any crime, Mendez said.

Mendez declined to stop Macy's from demanding money from suspected shoplifters who were not physically detained.

The judge noted that pending state legislation would limit the time a shoplifting suspect could be detained to one hour and forbidding retailers from forcing someone to pay and sign a confession before being let go.

Mendez's ruling prohibits Macy's from that practice in New York state. Lawyers are now seeking to have that ruling expanded across the entire country, the Law Journal reported.