Black Friday Gone Bad

In a desperate bid to get her hands on a discounted video game console, a shopper at a Walmart in Porter Ranch, California, used pepper spray to deter other shoppers. Following the attack, ten people required treatment by Los Angeles firefighters but nobody was hospitalized. The suspect paid for her purchases and left the store but turned herself in on Saturday. She has not been detained but according to Los Angeles Police Sgt. Jose Valle, she could be looking at battery charges.

At an Arizona Walmart, 54-year-old Jerald Newman was thrown to the ground and arrested for putting a video game under shirt in an alleged attempt to steal the product. However, according to Newman's family members and other witnesses, he put the video game in his pants waistband so that he could assist his grandson in maneuvering through the crowd. But this wasn't a simple arrest. According to David Chadd, A CNN iReporter from Las Vegas who witnessed the event, the officer performed a leg sweep sending Newman “face first into the ground.” Chadd later posted a video of the incident on CNN's iReport, showing an unconscious Newman lying in blood.

However, according to Assistant Chief Larry Hall, there is another side to story. He claims that Newman resisted arrest and complicated the situation. He further asserted that, at this point in time, there is no evidence that the officer involved behaved inappropriately. The officer involved had been hired by Walmart as a security measure. His name has not yet been released.

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An individual was shot in an attempted robbery outside of a Walmart in San Leandro, California. The victim remains in critical but stable condition. One suspect was taken into custody and another hospitalized.

In another armed robbery attempt, two people were injured as they left a South Carolina Walmart store. According to WMBF, a CNN affiliate, the perpetrators hit a man on the head and shot a woman in the leg but left the scene when another shopper flashed a gun.

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In a Kinston, North Carolina Walmart, an off-duty officer who was working security doused shoppers with pepper spray after a man fell into a display case. The officer apparently heard the commotion and believed that a fight had broken out.

Another disturbance occurred at a Walmart location in Rome, New York where a fight broke out sending two to the hospital with minor injuries. There were further reports of officers using stun guns on a couple of unruly customers in Florence, Alabama and in Southington, Connecticut.

However, despite all of the chaos, preliminary reports suggest that retailers had a particularly strong Black Friday. This may be due to the fact that retailers opened their doors earlier than ever this year in the hopes of drawing in bigger crowds. And while that means money for retailers, it could also mean lawsuits. When the crowds become too much to handle, fights erupt, people get hurt, actions can be misunderstood, and reactions become unpredictable.

Perhaps Betty Thomas, a Raleigh, North Carolina shopper put it best when she compared this year's situation to past years. “The difference is this year instead of a nice sweater you need a bullet proof vest and goggles.” Of course, that offers little defense against an unexpected leg sweep.