A source close to the matter told Arkansas Breaking News that facial recognition technology was not used in this case, that the detective’s characterization in the narrative is not correct, and that traditional investigative techniques were used to identify the suspect.
HOT SPRINGS, Ark. — A Jessieville man is facing a felony theft charge in Garland County after a Sam’s Club manager told police the store’s facial recognition system identified him as he walked in the door.
The disclosure appears in a sworn affidavit filed by a Hot Springs police detective and made public this week when prosecutors formally charged Chanse Lee Charles Bishop, 30, in Garland County Circuit Court. The affidavit does not explain how the system works, and Walmart, which owns Sam’s Club, has not yet said.
Arkansas Breaking News submitted questions to Walmart through the company’s media contact form Tuesday. A Walmart spokesperson called back within about 30 minutes and asked for a copy of the affidavit. The spokesperson called again several hours later, said the company was still looking into the matter and asked Arkansas Breaking News to hold the story until Wednesday. Arkansas Breaking News agreed and extended the deadline a second time to Thursday morning. The company had not provided a response as of publication.
What the affidavit says
According to the probable cause statement signed by Hot Springs Police Detective Cheatham, officers were called to the Sam’s Club at 1368 Higdon Ferry Road on April 15 for a theft that had already happened.
Store manager Rulitha Counts told police that at about 12:01 p.m. on April 12, “Sam’s Club Facial Recognition System identified a male known as Chanse Bishop entering the store.”
That account is the manager’s, as written down by the detective. The affidavit does not describe what the system is, whether it scans every shopper who walks in or only searches for people already on a list, how Bishop’s name came to be attached to his face, or whether the technology is in use at other Sam’s Club locations.
The alleged theft
Police say Bishop spent about 50 minutes in the store loading merchandise onto a flat cart. He is accused of packing items into two yellow and black plastic storage tubs and closing the lids to hide them.
At about 12:42 p.m., the affidavit says, he staged the cart near a fire exit on the west side of the building, walked past every register without paying and went outside to move his vehicle closer to the door. He came back in through the front entrance at 12:50 p.m. and returned to the cart.
The cart got stuck in the fire exit door. Police say Bishop grabbed the two tubs, put them in his vehicle and left the rest behind.
The store put the total value of the 26 items at $1,593.67. Police say Bishop got away with about six of them, worth about $641.01. The remaining $952.66 in merchandise was recovered from the cart.
Cheatham wrote that he compared Bishop’s Arkansas driver’s license photo to the store video and identified him as the suspect.
The charge
District Judge Kara Petro signed a misdemeanor arrest warrant on May 19. Bishop was booked into the Garland County Detention Center on July 23 on a $1,000 bond.
On Tuesday, Prosecuting Attorney Michelle C. Lawrence filed a felony information upgrading the case. Bishop is charged with theft of property under $1,000, subsequent offense, a Class D felony. The enhancement is based on a June 8 theft of property conviction in Clark County. A Class D felony carries up to six years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.
Bond in circuit court was set at $2,500.
Why it matters
Walmart has a long and contradictory public record on facial recognition. In 2015, the company confirmed it tested software from a vendor called FaceFirst in stores across several states, scanning every customer at the door and checking faces against a database of suspected shoplifters. Walmart said it dropped the program because it did not pay for itself.
Sam’s Club has since rolled out computer vision at store exits to verify receipts. The company has described that system as scanning carts, not faces.
The Hot Springs affidavit, on its face, describes something different: a system that put a name to a specific shopper as he entered the building. Whether that is an accurate description of what the store uses is one of the questions Walmart has not yet answered.
Arkansas has no law restricting how private businesses collect or use biometric data. Illinois, Texas and Washington do. Retailers including Kroger, Lowe’s and Macy’s have been sued under the Illinois law for running facial recognition on customers without consent.
Arkansas Breaking News has asked Walmart whether the system is in use at all Sam’s Club locations in Arkansas, how a person’s face and name are added to it, whether members are notified and how long the data is kept. The company has not answered.
This story will be updated if Walmart responds.
Bishop has not entered a plea. A charge is an accusation and he is presumed innocent.
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