Criminal lawyer Kyla Lee said that showing your receipt at the door was not only unethical but illegal in Canada.
She told CBC News: “In Canadian law, store employees or staff are not allowed to physically stop you from leaving or search your belongings unless they actually witness you commit an offense.
“You are free to walk past a receipt check, out the store.”
However, this does not apply to places like Costco, since members agree to receipt checks when they become a member.
The law in the US may also vary from state to state – in California, the California Penal code 490.5, states:
“If A merchant may detain a person for a reasonable time for the purpose of conducting an investigation in a reasonable manner whenever the merchant has probable cause to believe the person to be detained is attempting to unlawfully take or has unlawfully taken merchandise from the merchant’s premises.”
