'AITA for getting a mother of two arrested because she threw a candle at me?'
"AITA for getting a mother of two arrested because she threw a candle at me at work?"
I (19M) work at a fairly popular chain retail store. Everything started about three days ago when I was working the closing shift. One thing to note about our store is that if an item is not in stock, the customer can ask us to order the item to any branch of their choosing, to be delivered the next day.
The woman in question walked in about two minutes before closing and came straight to the register where I was working. She looked rushed and explained that she was there to collect an order she had placed. I politely told her that the pickup area had closed several hours earlier and that she would have to return the next day.
She began pleading and said she had been too busy taking care of her children (who were with her) to come earlier. I explained that the pickup area had its own staff, and anyone with access to that room had already left for the day. She seemed frustrated but eventually left with her children.
Since I was scheduled to work the following day, I knew I would probably have to deal with her again, and I was dreading it. She had been rude, and her children were very loud and energetic, knocking things over that I had to clean up.
The next day, about halfway through my shift, the woman returned. She walked up to my register, placed a candle on the counter, and I rang her up. Then she started demanding that I track her order because the pickup area couldn’t find it.
I checked the system and saw that the order had been placed over a month ago, so I told her that since she hadn’t picked it up within the 14-day window, it had likely been sent back to the warehouse.
She completely lost her temper and said it was all my fault, insisting that if I had just let her get the parcel the day before, everything would have been fine. I tried to explain that the parcel had already been returned weeks ago, but before I could finish, she picked up the candle and threw it at me. It was one of those candles in a glass jar, and it hit me in the temple, shattering on the ground. I fell and hit my head on the wall behind me.
As I was trying to get up, she started shouting even louder and began throwing other objects at me. The commotion must have drawn security, because they arrived, took her to the back, and held her and her two children there until the police showed up. My manager told me to go to the break room and wait until she called me. I sat there for about an hour and a half before my manager came in with the police.
They asked me questions about what happened, and I told them everything. Then they asked if I wanted to press charges. Even though I wasn’t seriously injured besides a bruise on my head, I told them I would. My manager told me to clock out early and take the rest of the week off.
When I got home, I told my mom everything. She called me heartless and said she didn’t raise me like that. She said I should have thought about how it would affect the woman’s children to see their mother in jail, and that I couldn’t understand how hard it is to be a parent. I initially thought I was in the right, but after talking to my mom, I’m second-guessing myself. Am I the bad guy?
Here's what people had to say to OP:
Equivalent_Lemon_319 says:
Wow. Your mom sucks. Single mom or not, actions have consequences. NTA.
itstheirishinme says:
What about the impact of learning from mum it's ok to assault someone and get no consequences. Your mum is wrong, you're NTA, but she is!
Independent-Flan-486 says:
Is your mother insane? This lady could have seriously injured you. The customer is unstable if she could fly off handle and injure strangers with such ease. Her kids are not safe with her. She 10000% percent needs charged pressed!
Witty_Commentator says:
NTA. Good grief, your mom is horrible. That woman made a choice to assault you. And she did it in front of her children! Let them all learn that actions have consequences.