steal
&
Your job description is?
Security guard.
And what do you do on a daily basis?
On a daily basis, I jus chill (laughs). Nah, I just make sure everything is where it’s
supposed to be at, nobody gets hurt, and anytime you need me I’m here. Cos uh,
the lot I work at, yknow the surrounding area is not too good. But the inside of the
lot is, yknow, secure.
Ok. Um…alright. So now I’m gonna ask you how old you are when yeah, when
you first stole something, when did you get into it? How did it begin, just the
beginning of it yknow?
Began? You know me, I just steal stuff all the time, well not all the time but it
started out with candy, at little stores and stuff like that. But like I remember when I
was in junior high, or was it elementary–shit I’m so old now–but elementary school,
everyone had to walk to school. And I loved money, shit when I was young, so every
morning when I walked to school I used to go to the boy’s market. And I’d go inside
the boy’s market and I didn’t think nothin I was so young, I’d be loitering and walking
around and I’d see pencils. And yknow at school there was a game called pencils,
play a little game of pencils with everybody around. so I was selling pencils for a
quarter. I would go into the store, I’d get yellow pencils and football pencils, flexible
pencils so that was 50 cent… I’d steal packs of pencils and go to school and sell
them. Yknow then I started stealing chocolate, and candy and then when I got older
I stole a lot. As I got older, about 14, 15, then I was like living on my own, I was out
of my mom’s house. I had my own household so yknow I needed money and so me
and my friends we used to go to people’s apartments that we know had music and
just rob them for their music. Yknow we wouldn’t steal little kids shit out of their
cars but we’d take their music. Sometimes we’d leave money in they cars, we’d
leave their cell phone in their car, sometimes we’d have a free cell phone for bout
two months, just talkin. Cos you know, we didn’t care, it was fun. I never ….thought
about stealing a car but I never did. My friend stole a car, he did like eight years.
Oh he got caught
Yeah.
Wow you didn’t end up going that night or just…usually you guys would all go
out?
Yeah, that’s what they do. We’d walk around, and don’t feel like walking no more…
steal a car.
And how do you steal a car
Many ways. Well, not many ways but it’s kinda complicated. Want to know the full
details on how to steal a car? (laughs)
Definitely. I mean I know there’s so many variables involved, in terms of people.
Well main part is all you gotta do is you need to first get in the car. Once you get in
the car you gotta know where the steering column is, and once you find that you
gotta break the steering column and then you gotta peel the steering column which
is, you gotta break where the keyhole goes in from the inside by the steering net.
Once you break that, start your car and go. All that hotwiring and shit, you don’t
gotta do that. I mean some parts you know, depends on how they’re made or what
kind of security they have.
So a car would be like…but you haven’t stolen a car?
No, that’s too risky yknow what I’m sayin? I didn’t do stuff I knew I wouldn’t get…if
I got caught it, and that was the main thing, never get caught no matter what. Not
like life and death no matter what type shit unless you were doing something that
bad, but I wouldn’t need a car.
02
I knew all
that shit was
bad but I just
needed the
money.”
Right. What would you say is like the most expensive thing you’ve ever stolen? It’s proabalby
like, or it could be like...I don’t know if you had a
really good night and an accumulation of things I
suppose…I don’t know. Maybe no, what’s the most
expensive thing you’ve stolen, like singular object?
sell the tools ...yeah like auto mechanic tools
The most expensive thing I’ve stolen? Umm good
question. I think it was some 12 inch competition
series uh speakers. But on the back of it, drilled on the
back of it was the amp. Those run like, just the speakers is like 600 and for the amp it’s probably bout like
4 or 500. So yknow, I mean that’s the most expensive
thing
Was there a particular…it wouldn’t really matter
who, it was more like when you saw an opportunity, but was there ever a place where you’d draw
the line? Just…with something that you know
you wouldn’t do. Just period, just because it went
against something you believe in or…
And they’re big
And 12 inch, in one box so there’s two speakers in one
box and then drilled in the back of the box is the amp.
And the amp is like this long. Like a 2000 watt amp.
Yeah.
Wow alright. And that was somewhat complicated
like in terms of planning, or was it kinda like in the
moment, like you’re just constantly aware?
It’s like whatever you find. Yknow, you never knkow it’s
like jackpot. It’s like gambling. It’s like you get in the
car…most of the times it’s like this if you look in the car
window and they gotta deck or a cd player most likely
it’s gonna have some speakers or an amp or something in the back or 6x9 or whatever. Cos the thing you
know, everybody in the hood…people want music in
their cars, and it’s expensive in the stores, yknow so
that’s what we used to do, steal the music, sell it to
people.
So like music and audio equipment and things of
that nature would be like pretty…
And tools, yknow people have tools in their car. We can
04
So lets talk a little bit about your stealing philosophy, if you will.
Mmhm.
Um. I mean, I didn’t really believe in any of the shit
I was doing. I knew all that shit was bad but I just
needed the money. But I would never steal like, like I
said, from kids or like women or I would never rob nobody, like actually run up on somebody and pull a gun
or...Yknow I would never do that. I was just like, there’s
something around and I knew I could sell it…If I didn’t
think I could sell it I wouldn’t steal it cos it’s not even
worth it, it’s like forget it. Yknow I wasn’t just one of
those people who love to steal, yknow what I’m sayin?
That’s the, that’s the [inaudible]...no fuck that. It’s just
I needed the money so I knew if I could sell it I stole
it. kids or like women or I would never rob nobody, like
actually run up on somebody and pull a gun or...Yknow
I would never do that. I was just like, there’s something
around and I knew I could sell it…If I didn’t think I could
sell it I wouldn’t steal it cos it’s not even worth it, it’s
like forget it. Yknow I wasn’t just one of those people
who love to steal, yknow what I’m sayin? That’s the,
that’s the [inaudible]...no fuck that. It’s just I needed
the money so I knew if I could sell it I stole it.
sec
cure
Alright, that makes sense. So, now today you are a figure of authority in some
sense. You’re a security guard, and so how do you view authority? How do you
think about it in that sense and why did you choose that a security job?
Its like weird. I didn’t really choose the job, it chose me.
O interesting
Looking for a job for like two years, just strugglin, need money. Like I said I was tired
of just stealing, I was gettin too old, you know, I was tired of all the other ya know
crazy stuff I was doing- and I was just- I need to stop. So I finally got a security job.
Once I got that job I stuck with it. I’ve been working for a long time now. And its cool
job, you know, I got my head on straight, I don’t even think about stealing. Even if
I’m broke, need some money- I know I can work, make the money nowWell you don have to worry about it, you have a legitimate job.
Exactly, so, now that’s how, that’s how like- like before I started working where I’m
working now, I used to work at a mall, well before- I worked at, well, it was a couple
of years ago I worked at a mall.
Security in the mall?
06
Yea. And I would know when people would steal- well, I wouldn’t know butSo you caught people andAww yea. But when I first, the first person I caught stealing- I hate that shit. I hate it.
You hate having to do it?
Ya, because then the police came, and they arrested him, and I was sick, I had
nightmares. Would mess with me. I was trippin’ off that like damn, and like when
they arrested- when the police came ya know, to the security office, where I had the
guy at he was all, ya know asked me to let him go and stuff, and I was really thinking
about letting him go- but one of my partners had already called, ya know called the
police- so um, shit they came, and they searched him, and when they searched him
they found like a half ounce of weed on him.
Aww
And it was like, it was vice police that had arrested him and that’s they deal with
judge, so he just gotSo you were sympathetic?
Mmm hmm. And then afterwards I really didn’t- yea. Yea, yea I don’t like the police
because the police don’t like me but, still, you know, wrong is wrong. Ya know that’s
why I don’t like to do wrong. So after a while, when I had to stop you from stealing,
like I would give him a chance to try and get away sometimes, it started turning into
a game, and that’s the thing about like all law enforcement,
That’s too bad.
Yea. Like security- pssh. Its just like, almost like a little power, you know what I’m
saying? That’s not what you want, well, some people, that’s what most people want,
but like, its like a cop. And they got power.
Exactly.
So they can, that’s why they mess with you. When people do certain things, ya
know, cops come to the rescue yea, but at the same time they don’t. You know what
I mean, its a good thing their around, but at the same time, you got corrupt ones,
07
a chance
to try and
get away
sometime
it started
turning in
a game
Of course.
Its not, its not good. So. Its all about power. That’s what I’m talking about. Because
I started liking it. Like somebody would, somebody would be stealing something,
and we would get a call from Macy’s- like alright they’re about to run out, whatever
side they was gonna run out, and, I would see them running out, and they would see
me, catch eyes, take off and boom! Break off down the street, and I let ‘em run for
a minute then I would just take off after them, because I was pretty fast, you know,
yea I catch ‘em, I’m like damnYou catch them?
Yea. But man I let you go, but why the fuck you running so slow? They be mad they
wouldn’t know, fight me- one time I got into fight with a dude. That’s when I got tired
of like, like, really like, dealing with ‘em, chasing people dealing with that type of security that why I started working with security where I really don’t have to deal with
like people stealing and stuff like that because. That shit, that shits dangerous. One
time, this guys was just walking through the whole mall, just stealing shit from very
store he would go to, he would just hands on- so I was walking down the street and
I’m ya know looking around for the guy because you know, couple stores called us,
so I’m getting a description on the radio, and as I’m getting a description, he walks
out like right in front of me, and when he walks right out in front of me he hears the
rest of the description is him and he takes off running. Straight across the street
though, across a busy intersection. And not thinking, I just took off right behind
him, and I didn’t look neither, and both almost got hit by a car we ended up crossing
the street, and he was a big guy. Alright, so, he started running around the parking
lot he was in, and after a while he got tired of running and he wanted to fight, and
he was on crystal meth, I mean I found out, I found out that after, ya know, after I
arrested him and the police came and all that. But yea he started fighting, ya know
shit- I’m on point. I’m a little dude, you know what I’m saying- I’m not a little dude
but I wasn’t as big as he was, but he was bigCompared to him you were little.
Yea. Exactly. So- man we started fightin’ and I got him down and handcuffed him,
and the police came and they arrested him and I was done after that. I didn’t want
to work there. Don’t do that type of security. Because you know what I’m saying I
want a job, you know, a cool job, where I can relax, you know, secure everyday.
So you don’t have to really deal with that much bad stuff at ktla?
09
Naw. Because I mean, if something happens, then I’m there. But, so far nothing really happens. You know? I mean, you might get like a fire alarm goes off and there’s
and ambulance would come, or fire department would come, because its nothing
really, you know, go check this area, they checked the area, its fine. You know, go
about my way, write a report about, you know, they came, they left, and it was done.
I said, other than that, you know, I’m just there. I just check people in to the lot, you
know, make sure they alright, check their ids, alright coolWhat if you like chased somebody down- is there like a parking lot, you secure
a parking lot?
Yea, we um, yea we in a parking lot, naw if somebody- if I seen that I was working in
the parking lot, and I saw somebody stealin’ something out somebody’s car,
And he was being like sneaky- and you fucking saw what he was doing- fucking
caught this guy, would you justMost likely I say something. But depending on how person look and how shady it
look, you know what I mean, because no one else is out there, its just me, and you
know I can get on the radio and call “hey” but if somebody pulls a gun on me, and
wants to shoot me because I’m trying tell he’s stealing a pound of cocaine in this
guys trunk, that they know about, and now I know, you know what I mean? Then I’m
stuck so- most likely I’m gonna mind my business. The code is, for security- observe
and report. And that’s what I do. I observe: “hey ya’ll, there’s a guy over here he just
backed out and if no body comes, I just told him, I wrote it down, what he looked
like, and that’s it.
An interview in two parts by Mia Chamasmany and Vanessa Lam
LSTN: A workshop with Joshua Trees and Yvan Martinez
Art Center College of Design / Graphic Design Department
Design and Concept: Mia Chamasmany & Vanessa Lam, [email protected],
[email protected]