Sales of new athletic shoe cause fights, arrests

[Bad_Daddy 2,209]

http://news.yahoo.com/sales-athletic-shoe-cause-fights-arrests-015019039.html

Reuters – 3 hrs ago

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Police in several cities around the country on Friday were called to stores to manage unruly shoppers seeking Nike's new Air Jordan athletic shoes.

In cities from North Carolina to Washington state, crowds pushed, fought or rushed the doors to buy the black-and-white Air Jordan 11 Retro Concords, which went on sale on Friday, police said.

In Tukwila, Washington, a Seattle suburb, police had to use pepper spray to break up fights in a crowd of 1,000 to 2,000 people at the Westfield South Center mall, according to police spokesman Mike Murphy.

The mall had asked for two police officers for the sale, which started at 3 a.m., but got a much bigger crowd of shoppers than expected, Murphy said. Two entry doors were broken off. It took 25 police officers to subdue the crowd enough to allow people to buy shoes, Murphy said.

One man punched a police officer. "He did not get his shoes," Murphy said. "Instead he went to jail."

Murphy said the crowd left behind empty alcohol containers, and there was a heavy smell of marijuana in the air. "There was definitely a criminal element," he said.

In Indianapolis, incidents were reported at three different malls around the city Friday morning, police said. One store saw a crowd of about 300, which broke a door down.

"We had a large crowd of teens trying to get into the store," Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department spokesman Kendale Adams said.

An Indianapolis television station, WRTV, ran footage of one incident. It showed young people stampeding into the store, a few losing shoes and jackets on the way in. There were no arrests and no reported injuries, Adams said.

At the Omaha Crossroads Mall, police reported that "a very large crowd became unruly," as crowds began pushing and fights broke out, according to Officer Michael Pecha, an Omaha Police Department spokesman. No arrests or injuries were reported.

Three Charlotte, North Carolina-area malls drew police presence, and one person was arrested, according to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department.

In Toledo, Ohio, two stores offered a limited supply to go on sale at 5 a.m., Toledo Police Sergeant Joe Heffernan said. Hundreds of people gathered, and by 4:30 a.m. some started fighting for position in line.

Five people were charged with disorderly conduct, Heffernan said. There were no injuries. Police decided to select some buyers to escort into the store.

Nike issued a statement saying the Beaverton, Oregon-based company was "extremely concerned" to hear of reported crowd incidents at some locations. "We encourage anyone wishing to purchase our product to do so in a respectful and safe manner," the statement said.

A pair of the shoes sells for $180, according to the Nike website, but they were already being advertised on EBay with asking bids of as much as $605.

KicksOnFire.com, an online sneaker magazine, has called the shoe "THE sneaker pick-up of the year."

In Richmond, California, a gunshot outside a mall disrupted a line-up of shoppers for the Air Jordan shoes, said Lieutenant Bisa French, a spokeswoman for the Richmond police department.

The gun appears to have gone off accidentally, and the person in the crowd with the weapon was arrested for negligent discharge of a firearm, French said. The incident led the mall, about 10 miles northeast of San Francisco, to shut down for a couple of hours, she said.

Some scenes were more controlled. The Sports Seasons store in Nashville, Tennessee, received 20 pairs to sell, and allowed one customer into the store at a time, manager Marquis Porter said. After a customer bought shoes, an armed guard walked the buyer back to his or her car.

"When I arrived at 7 a.m., we had 50 people waiting outside," Porter said. "I got out of the car and received a round of applause when I walked to the door."

As for those who didn't get shoes, "there were a lot of sad faces," Porter said. "But everyone respected the way we did it. This was the craziest release I've ever seen."

[Ban Hammer 12,853]

[kytwell 179]

Put faces to the idiots

http://video.foxnews.com/v/1344392048001/air-jordans-cause-chaos-at-stores-across-us

180 dollars for shoes that maybe cost 10 dollars to make. These baby Daddy's probably didn't spend 180 on their kids, but they'll get some kicks and then probably get shot for them in a week.

[Bad_Daddy 2,209]

Put faces to the idiots

http://video.foxnews.com/v/1344392048001/air-jordans-cause-chaos-at-stores-across-us

180 dollars for shoes that maybe cost 10 dollars to make. These baby Daddy's probably didn't spend 180 on their kids, but they'll get some kicks and then probably get shot for them in a week.

Here's a few vids, slide shows, and stories on it. I saw some of this on world news earlier tonight. It was off the hook.

http://www.waff.com/story/16383548/shoppers-throw-punches-while-waiting-for-sale-of-popular-tennis-shoe <--- From Pineville, North Carolina: "Black Eye Friday: Shoppers throw punches over new Air Jordans" (includes video)

http://www.q13fox.com/news/kcpq-crowd-waiting-for-new-air-jordan-shoes-clash-with-police-20111223,0,3200543.story?track=rss <--- From Tukwila, Washington: "Crowd waiting for new Air Jordans clashes with police" (with video)

http://www.wdrb.com/story/16383283/police-called-to-jefferson-mall-for-fight-over-sneakers <--- From Louisville, Kentucky: "WITNESS: Fight breaks out at Jefferson Mall over sneakers" (with video)

http://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/New-Jordan-Shoes-Source-of-Fighting-136147458.html <--- From Richmond, California: "Mall Gunfire Over New Jordan Shoes" (with video)

http://detroit.cbslocal.com/2011/12/23/shoppers-waiting-for-shoe-release-riot-break-into-mall/ <--- From Taylor, Michigan: "Shoppers Waiting For Shoe Release Riot, Break Into Mall"

Edited December 24, 2011 by Why_Me

[Robby999 1,024]

I bet you will never hear about that crowd fighting over work boots like that!

[Bad_Daddy 2,209]

I bet you will never hear about that crowd fighting over work boots like that!

[kytwell 179]

I bet you will never hear about that crowd fighting over work boots like that!

True dat

[Danno 1,228]

Yeah the predictable crowd hit Charlotte too along with other cites all across the nation..

I'll say what I have said for a while now, the Black Culture is sinking fast, every holiday ( or even monthly) we see such examples ...even on Black College campuses.

Every decent Black can see it is and too wonders where it hits bottom or what can be done to combat this growing problem of mobs of Black acting the fool at it's most innocent and often much much worse.

With a now 70 sum percent illegitimacy rate, no group can maintain a civil community with this loss of basic family foundation.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jHCBAkQshCg

[sandinista! 1,816]

Is everyone in this thread trolling for David Duke to hit you up for a guest piece in one of his POS publications?

[Danno 1,228]

Is everyone in this thread trolling for David Duke to hit you up for a guest piece in one of his POS publications?

When was the last time David Duke trampled kids to get to a pair of basketball shoes?

Your indignation seems momentarily misplaced.

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

Not in Vermont.

I bet you will never hear about that crowd fighting over work boots like that!

Is everyone in this thread trolling for David Duke to hit you up for a guest piece in one of his POS publications?

Who is David Duke?

[Jenn! 918]

I thought jordans came out on saturdays.

[spookyturtle 9,465]

I thought jordans came out on saturdays.

Long time no read. How have you been?

[Jenn! 918]

Well, thanks. work has really been cutting into my VJ time. Not too much new around here, I see!

[SuperDuper! 230]

I was in Starbucks this morning, and walked by some one playing a video with all these people rushing into the mall to buy the New Air Jordan's. I didn't get a good look, but I think they were saying it was a bunch of Jewish, Amish and Asian types so crazy for these shoes? Who knew!