Around 7:21 PM on November 18, 2024, officers with the Hoboken Police Department responded to a report of a shoplifting at ShopRite on 900 Madison Street. Officers Shawn Sodora and Geovanni Cruzado arrived on scene around 7:21 PM and walked upstairs to the loss prevention office. In the loss prevention office, they met with the loss prevention employee and made contact with the alleged shoplifter, who was identified as 63-year-old Gail Wells. The employee informed the officers that she only paid for about $64 worth of items. However, she attempted to shoplift $94.73 worth of items by concealing them. Gail was placed under arrest, handcuffed, and escorted to the patrol car. As she was being arrested, she told the officers that another woman whom she cared for was expecting her and that she had to go to work soon. Gail was transported to the Hoboken Police Department by the officers for further processing. At police HQ, she was searched in more detail by a female officer. She was ultimately charged with shoplifting under 2C:20-11B(1) and released pending her court appearance. ---------------------------------------------- Please LIKE, SUBSCRIBE, and consider supporting this channel (email us for more information). Our content is shared for educational and news gathering purposes. We are in compliance with YouTube's Fair Use Policy because we edit several long clips into a concise story. This is similar to other law enforcement channels on YouTube. All videos and case documents were obtained pursuant to the New Jersey Open Public Records Act, N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1 et seq. (P.L. 2024, c.16). Defendants are considered innocent until proven guilty. The New Jersey Supreme Court has previously affirmed in Salzano v. North Jersey Media Group, 993 A.2d 778 (2010) that “The fair-report privilege reflects the judgment that the need, in a self-governing society, for free-flowing information about matters of public interest outweighs concerns over the uncompensated injury to a person's reputation.” This video advances a compelling public interest. The summary of events was based on records that are “open to public view through open access to public records” as defined in the Salzano case. In Ramos v. Flowers, 429 N.J. Super. 13, the Appellate Division of the Superior Court has also affirmed the right to film law enforcement interactions.

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