I was at a Walmart in Delaware at the garden center checkout. They had a woman who went through the security barriers and they went off. The cashier merely said, "Maam?" And the woman, who had a huge purse and was clearly stealing lots of stuff, never missed a step as she said over her shoulder.
"I bought some prepaid cell cards, that must be it."
All of us in line looked at one another and then the cashier as if this had to be a joke. No, she said. The law says they can't detain the woman unless a police officer is present. And they can't even look in her purse for the same reason.
But if someone had seen her taking the items they could have done something. It's all write off anyway. That could be why they have these weird policies all over different Walmart stores.