BUCKHANNON — A video has surfaced of a man arrested for not wearing a mask inside of Walmart Supercenter in Buckhannon.
On January 10, 2021, a customer named John walked into the Buckhannon Walmart not wearing a mask. Store employees began screaming at the man for not wearing a mask, asking him to put one on, and calling out his clothing attire. The customer was wearing a President Donald Trump “Keep America Great” hat.
No footage has been seen where Walmart employees ever asked the man to leave the store.
Officer Angel McCauley arrived on the scene, after a report was made that there was an “irate customer cussing at employees” and “videoing” them.
Body-cam footage shows Officer McCauley approaching the man who was finished shopping and checking out at Register 8. She asked him if he had breathing issues that prevented him from wearing a mask, and he replied that he did. When she asked for the specifics, he declined to answer, stating that he was not required by law to provide specific details about the status of his health.
Then, Officer McCauley demanded to see his driver’s license or identification. John refused, correctly stating that West Virginia is not a stop-and-ID state, as only other 26 states have stop-and-identify statutes on their books.
When the man refused to provide identification, Officer McCauley stated that he must comply as he was under investigation and was committing “obstruction, which is a jailable offense.”
The man responded, “Well, do what you gotta do.”
“Put your hands behind your back,” she instructed.
“Yes, mam,” John responded.
John the Walmart Shopper was then arrested, charged with obstruction, and taken to the Buckhannon City Police Department.
Officers with the West Virginia State Police arrived at the department, where John proceeded to explain to them how his rights were being violated and that he did not violate any law, as he claimed he was not specifically asked to leave the store.
The state trooper then told John, “Take your f*cking Hillbilly ass law degree elsewhere.” He was then taken inside the department office.
John Bryan, a renowned constitutional law and civil rights attorney in West Virginia, took the case to represent John the Walmart Shopper.
Following the arrest, Assistant Upshur County Prosecuting Attorney Kelley Cunningham dismissed the charges after it was found that West Virginia is in fact not a stop-and-ID state.
Footage of the Interaction