STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS COUNTY OF CHARLESTON ____ MICHAEL BROWN _ CIVIL ACTION COVERSHEET 10 __. 3B 2017 cP vs. ) ) ) ) ) Plaintiff(s) ) ) ) BEST BUY CO., INC; BEST BUY STORES, L.P. ; ee ) Defendant(s) Submitted By: JULIAN ALLEN, ESQ. SC Bar#: 76076 Address: ALLEN LAW. Telephone #: “$43.8825005 368 SAVANNAH HWY, SUITE C Fax ds $43,285.3908 CHARLESTON, SC 29407 Other: E-mail: jullanttalfenlawsccom NOTE: The coversheet and Information contained hervin neither replaces nor supplements the ling and service of pleadings or other papers as AOtired by ls This form is required forthe ue ofthe Clerk of Court fr the purpose of docketing. It must be filed out completely signed, Tad dated. A copy af this coversheet must be served onthe defendants) along withthe Summons and Complaint DOCKETING INFORMATION (Check all that apply) "If Action is JudgmentiSettlement do not complete (JURY TRIAL demanded in complaint MZ] NON-JURY TRIAL demanded in complaint. 75 Eo This case is subject to ARBITRATION pursuant to the Court Annexed Alternative Dispute Resolution Rul scm ie seta MEDIATION pursuant to the Court Annexed Alternative Dispute Resolution Rules. This case is exempt from ADR. (Proof of ADR/Exemption Attached) 5 NATURE OF ACTION (Check One Box Below) id 21 RYH LIGZ contacts ‘ors Profesona Malpractice ‘Ter Personal aury ei Constructions (100) Dental Malpractice (200) Conversion (310) D Claim & Delivg(400) Debt Collection (110) D__ Legal Malpractice (210) Motor Vehicle Accident (320) ()_ Condemnation F410) Gera 30 By Meet Nabmecse (20) CE) Premises Liabity 220). Feels (20) D1 Breach of Contract (140) Previous Notice of Intent Case # D_Produces Liability (340) DD Mechanic's Lien (430) (_—Fraud/Bad Faith (150) w_- —_— Personal injury (350) Partition (440) Cl Fal elver [Nov riches wal 0) Wrong exh 060 1 sein 450 Warranty (160) onereen, 1 AnmlBater 7) 1 Bulding Code Victation 460) Employment sin 170) CD Saieriba 22 Ocean Employment (180) otter 399) DF other (199) _ sea pean annie Law tet SetepentiSetemens — rewgoo) co “eamarbecrme(80) (bea Sclement 70) 1 Anmeton x0 Co Masdamss20) incl Revew 810) Ty Pompegnen (10) EL Mapa S10) O_ Habess Corpus (530) D_ Reliet (820) D Magistrate’s Judgment (720) O Magistrate-Criminal (920) Cl ote) Gh Feraen nanan 30) Nin Seen 30 Bo Mei 039 FL feremczeiion(e)) El. Tmetpeduagnen (40) Prbre Cour O40 D_ Forfeiture—Consent Order (850) () Lis Pendens (750) 1 scpor (980) O_ Other (899) D1 Transfer of Structured Worker's Comp (960) Setlement Payment Rights E)Zoning Board (70) Application (760) OD _ Public Service Comm. (990) ‘Special/Complex /Other D Confession of Judgment (770) O_ Employment Security Comm (991) (Environmental (600) (O_ Pharmaceuticals (630) 1 Patition for Workers H samoniearh (610) E]_ Unfar Tad Prins (40) Competuonetiement_ CE} One (9) ‘pm 80) Mode 20 DD Osotsise Dosen 650 2) One oan) ote. D_ Marion to Quash Subpoena in weetee heey acho ) Sexual Predator (510) O Pre-Suit Dis ‘Submitting Party Signature: Date: i Note: Frivolous civil proceedings may be subject to sanctions pursuant to SCRCP, Rule 11, and the South Cardlina Frivolous Civil Proceedings Sanctions Act, 8.C. Code Ann, §15-36-10 et. seq SCCA / 234 (06/2015) Page | of 2FOR MANDATED ADR COUNTIES ONLY Aiken, Allendale, Anderson, Bamberg, Barnwell, Beaufort, Berkeley, Calhoun, Charleston, Cherokee, Clarendon, Colleton, Darlington, Dorchester, Florence, Georgetown, Greenville, Hampton, Horry, Jasper, Kershaw, Lee, Lexington, Marion, Oconee, Orangeburg, Pickens, Richland, Spartanburg, Sumter, Union, Williamsburg, and York SUPREME COURT RULES REQUIRE THE SUBMISSION OF ALL CIVIL CASES TO AN ALTERNATIVE DISPUTE RESOLUTION PROCESS, UNLESS OTHERWISE EXEMPT. You are required to take the following action(s): 1 ‘The parties shall select a neutral and file a “Proof of ADR” form on or by the 210" day of the filing of this action. If the parties have not selected a neutral within 210 days, the Clerk of Court shall then appoint a primary and secondary mediator from the current roster on a rotating basis from among those mediators agreeing to accept cases in the county in which the action has been filed. ‘The initial ADR conference must be held within 300 days after the filing of the action. Pre-suit medical malpractice mediations required by S.C. Code §15-79-125 shall be held not later than 120 days after all defendants are served with the “Notice of Intent to File Suit” or as the court directs. (Medical malpractice mediation is mandatory statewide.) Cases are exempt from ADR only upon the following grounds: 1a. Special proceeding, or actions seeking extraordinary relief such as mandamus, habeas corpus, or prohibition; b. Requests for temporary relief ©. Appeals 4. Post Conviction relief matters; €. Contempt of Court proceedings; f. Forfeiture proceedings brought by governmental entities; @. Mortgage foreclosures: and hh, Cases that have been previously subjected to an ADR conference, unless otherwise required by Rule 3 or by statute. In cases not subject to ADR, the Chief Judge for Administrative Purposes, upon the motion of the court or of any party, may order a case to mediation. Motion of a party to be exempt from payment of neutral fees due to indigency should be filed with the Court within ten (10) days after the ADR conference has been concluded. Please Note: You must comply with the Supreme Court Rules regarding ADR. Failure to do so may affect your case or may result in sanctions, SCCA / 234 (06/2015) Page 2 of 2STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS. ) COUNTY OF CHARLESTON ) CASE NO.: 2017-CP-10- ) MICHAEL BROWN, ) } 3 Plaintiff, ) = ) = BS v. ) SUMMONS == _, ) 2 BEST BUY, CO., INC.; BESTBUY ) 3 STORES, L.P., ) ) Defendants. ) YOU ARE HEREBY SUMMONED AND REQUIRED to answer the Complaint in the above-entitied action, a copy of which is served upon you, and to serve a copy of your Answer upon the attorney at their office located at 568-C Savannah Highway Charleston, South Carolina 29407 within thirty (30) days after the date of such service, exclusive of the day of service; and if you fail to answer the Complaint within that time, judgment by default will be rendered against you for the relief demanded in the Complaint. ALLEN LAW fide Mien P.O. Box 12429 Charleston, SC 29422 T: 843.882.5005 F: 843.284.3908 julian@allenlawsc.comDAVID AYLOR LAW OFFICES dea 24 Broad Street Charleston, SC 29401 343.577.5530 F: 843.577.9204 david@davidaylor.com May 12, 2017 ATTORNEYS FOR PLAINTIFFSTATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA ) IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS: COUNTY OF CHARLESTON ) CASE NO.: 2017-CP-10- ) MICHAEL BROWN, ) = ) = Plaintiff, ) s ) 2 v ) COMPLAINT => ) (JURY TRIAL REQUESTED) ~* BEST BUY, CO.,INC.; BESTBUY ) STORES, LP, ) ) Defendants. ) The Plaintiff respectfully shows and alleges the following: PARTIES, JURISDICTION, and FACTUAL BACKGROUND Plaintiff Michael Brown is a citizen and resident of Charleston County, South Carolina. Plaintiff has never been arrested and serves a Councilman for the City of North Charleston. The Defendants, Best Buy, Co., Inc. and Best Buy Stores, L.P. (hereafter collectively referred to as “Best Buy”), are upon information and belief foreign corporate entities that own, control, and operate retail stores throughout the United States, including particularly in Charleston County, South Carolina. The corporate entity Defendants enjoy a parent, sister, affiliate, subsidiary, or other close corporate relationship such that they have an amalgamation of interests here and are to be treated as one and the same for purposes of this action. Best Buy has sufficient minimum contacts to Charleston County, South Carolina to be subject to civil actions for damages in this jurisdiction. Best Buy is the country's largest retail consumer electronics store. Page 1 of 57. 10. u 12 13 14. 15, 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21 Best Buy derives substantial revenues and profits from its retail store operations in Charleston County, South Carolina. The events complained of herein occurred within or originated at Best Buy’s store at 7612 Rivers Avenue in North Charleston, South Carolina. Best Buy's acts and omissions caused Plaintiff to suffer damages within Charleston County, South Carolina, This Court has jurisdiction over the parties and the subject matter herein, and venue is proper in the Charleston County Court of Common Pleas. (On or about March 28, 2017, after attending his son's baseball game, the Plaintif visited the Best Buy store in North Charleston, South Carolina as a customer to purchase an electronic cable, At all times herein, Plaintif was acting lawfully as a customer of Best Buy. On this date and location, Plaintiff had talked with employees of Best Buy about the different cable options and adaptors in the store. Plaintif ultimately decided not to purchase any items at that particular time. As Plaintiff was attempting to leave the store, a Best Buy employee, agent, or representative stopped the Plaintiff and accused Plaintiff of attempting to steal merchandise Plaintiff never concealed any merchandise of Best Buy, nor did he ever attempt to take any merchandise without payment. Best Buy's employees falsely and publicly accused Plaintiff of attempting to hide or steal merchandise from them, without probable cause or reasonable suspicion. A Best Buy employee stated one of the reasons that he suspected the Plaintiff of stealing was because Plaintiff was wearing a hoodie. At some point, Best Buy called the police. The police did not find probable cause to arrest anyone. Ultimately, the Plaintiff freely left the store, Plaintiff was made to prove his innocence against false claims of shoplifting in a Public setting before numerous customers and other Best Buy employees. Page 2 of S23. 24, 25. 26. 21. 28, 29. 30. 32. All of the Best Buy employees, managers, and agents who had contact with Plaintiff on this date and location were acting within the course and scope of their employment, and in a representative capacity for Best Buy. The content of all paragraphs above and below shall be restated and fully incorporated as to each cause of action outlined in this action. FOR A FIRST CAUSE OF ACTION (Defamation) Best Buy, by and through their agents and employees, made false publications about Plaintiff that were harmful to his character and reputation. More specifically, Best Buy falsely accused Plaintiff of engaging in the criminal activity of shoplifting. These false and detamatory statements regarding Plaintiff were uttered aloud in front of other customers and repeated by Best Buy's employees to numerous individuals, including other customers and employees within the store. In making these statements about Plaintif, Best Buy was falsely accusing Plaintiff of committing a crime involving acts of dishonesty. Allegations of criminal conduct are slander per se. These false and defamatory statements made by Best Buy about Plaintiff were made with actual malice and ill will, and without probable cause or reasonable suspicion. The false and defamatory statements made by Best Buy regarding Plaintitf do Not involve matters of public concern nor are they otherwise protected by any privilege. As a direct and proximate result of the defamatory statements made by Best Buy, Plaintif has suffered damages As a result of the conduct and omissions of Best Buy, Plaintiff is entitled to judgment against Best Buy, jointly and severally, for actual damages, for punitive damages, for the costs of this action, for pre judgment interest, for post judgment interest, for legally presumed damages, and for such other and further relief as this court and jury deems fair. Page 3 of S34, 35, 36. 37. 38, 39. 40. 4 FOR A SECOND CAUSE OF ACTION (Negligence) As a retail store, Best Buy owes certain duties of care to Plaintiff and the public at large. These duties include, but are not limited to, duties to never falsely accuse customers of criminal activity, and duties to never do anything to cause unnecessary fear, anxiety, humiliation, embarrassment, or other unwanted public attention to customers. These duties also include obligations to follow internal policies and procedures within Best Buy stores at all times. These duties also include proper hiring, training, selection, retention, supervision, control, and oversight of all Best Buy employees. Best Buy has policies and procedures governing every aspect of their store operations and employee conduct within their stores. When a Best Buy employee fails to follow company policies and procedures, and a customer is harmed as a result, Best Buy must be held responsible. Best Buy has breached their duties of care owed to Plaintiff in numerous respects, including but not limited to, failing to follow company policies and procedures regarding shoplifting and loss prevention, falsely accusing a customer of shopiifting without probable cause, falsely accusing a customer of shoplifting in a public manner, falsely accusing a customer of shoplifting without allowing the customer to move beyond the point of sale, failing to properly hire, train, select, retain, supervise, and otherwise implement proper employees or proper loss prevention techniques within their retail stores, and in such other particulars to be shown at trial As a direct and proximate result of the careless, negligent, grossly negligent, reckless, willful, wanton, acts and omissions of Best Buy and their employees herein, Plaintiff has suffered damages. ‘As a result of the conduct and omissions of Best Buy, Plaintiff is entitled to judgment against Best Buy, jointly and severally, for actual damages, for punitive damages, for the costs of this action, for pre judgment interest, for post judgment Page 4 of 5interest, for legally presumed damages, and for such other and further relief as this court and jury deems fair. WHEREFORE, Plaintiff prays this Court inquire into the matters set forth herein and grant him judgment against these Defendants, jointly and severally, for actual damages, for punitive damages, for the costs of this action, for pre judgment interest, for post judgment interest, and for such other and further relief as this Court deems just and appropriate. May 12, 2017 julia Mien P.O. Box 12429 Charleston, SC 29422 T. 843.882.5005, 843.284.3908 julian@allenlawse.com DAVID AYLOR LAW OFFICES f he ne David aflor 24 Broad Street Charleston, SC 29401 T: 843.577.5530 F: 843.577.9204 david @davidaylor.com ATTORNEYS FOR PLAINTIFF Page 5 of S