A mother of two has faced a firestorm of criticism after revealing that she refuses to return her shopping cart.
Leslie Dobson, a Los Angeles-based psychologist and social media creator with over 300,000 followers across platforms, made the divisive post to TikTok on Thursday.
‘I’m not returning my shopping cart and you can judge me all you want,’ she professed in a clip that has racked up nearly 11 million views.
‘I’m not getting my groceries into my car, getting my children into the car and leaving them in the car to go return the cart. So if you’re gonna give me a dirty look… f*** off.’
As backlash mounts, Dobson – the mother of a two-year-old son and seven-year-old daughter – has created another video to hit back at her critics.
Leslie Dobson, a Los Angeles-based psychologist and social media creator, took the Internet by storm after sharing that she refuses to return shopping carts
The mother of two, pictured with her son, daughter and husband, claimed she was afraid her children would be abducted if she left them alone while returning her cart
‘It’s May 31 and about six million people have freaked out over me not returning my shopping cart because my kids are in the car,’ she said in a clip posted to Instagram.
‘So I want to give you some statistics. Last year 265 children were abducted in parking lots in America. Half of those were sexually assaulted.’
While Dobson doesn’t cite her source, the statistic appears comes from a report by a nonprofit called Kids and Car Safety.
The group claimed they determined the number by ‘reviewing news stories’ and acknowledged that law enforcement does not keep statistics on children abducted in this manner, indicating that the figure was unreliable.
‘As a single mom returning your shopping cart you are a prime for a predator to watch and grab you,’ Dobson continued.
She shares two children with her husband Wesley Cook, a clinical psychologist.
Dobson then provided another excuse: returning a shopping cart means leaving a car running and unoccupied, which is illegal in some states.
‘Many comments said that they would turn the car on, leave the air on the kids and go return the shopping cart,’ she said. ‘Well, in Los Angeles in one particular parking lot, that’s at least a 12 minute walk. You could go to jail.’
Dobson, who is married, asserted that single mothers returning their shopping carts were ‘prime for a predator to watch and grab you’
To bolster her claims about child abduction, she cited unverified statistics from a nonprofit that drew their conclusion by ‘reviewing news stories’
California vehicle code does not allow a car to stand on any highway or public street, largely as a measure to prevent motor vehicle theft.
In Sacramento, rather than Los Angeles, it is a misdemeanor to leave the ignition key in an unattended vehicle in any public place, including parking lots.
‘There are reports from the Bureau of Justice saying 10 percent of crimes occur in parking lots,’ Dobson continued, citing another unverified figure commonly used in advertisements for security companies.
‘If you get to a parking lot, you should look at the lighting. You should look at security guards. You should look at how the parking lot is laid out. If it feels safe, go return your cart,’ she said.
‘If it doesn’t feel safe, trust your gut, trust your intuition, and keep you and your family safe. It’s not worth the judgement you’ll get.
‘There are actual lawyers who specialize in parking lot crimes and they sue the grocery stores and guess what? I’ve been a part of those cases. So if you want to be ignorant, go ahead.’
Dobson was triggered to issue her response after commenters on the original video lambasted her apparent laziness and entitlement.
Several users made reference to the ‘shopping cart theory,’ which postulates that the decision to return or abandon a shopping cart is indicative of one’s moral character.
Dobson was blasted by netizens who referenced the ‘shopping cart theory,’ which claims that returning a shopping cart is a litmus test for one’s character
‘Small things like this is what shows character in a person,’ one TikTok user remarked. ‘I am not a parent but even if it’s raining or snowing I return my cart.’
‘There is a secret third option: you unload the groceries and together with the kids you go return the cart – also teaching them to do it as a byproduct,’ another user quipped.
One woman wrote that she was a single, disabled mother who relied on the shopping cart to walk, ‘and still walk the cart to the corral and hobble back to my car.’
Yet another user wrote that she always returned her cart despite having balance issues due to chemotherapy treatment.
Dobson responded to this user and several others with the same comment.
‘I want women to feel empowered to trust their intuition if they feel unsafe, ignore judgment,’ she wrote.
‘Risk isn’t worth it and our lives are precious. I have seen lives destroyed. I hope you never don’t.’