That is an excellent point that hadn't occurred to me. I was distracted by the dangers of bringing cops into a situation that did not already involve any violence or fear. But the MIL might not actually be doing anything wrong at all. Stores throw away so much stuff. If it's scratched. If it's returned, and they don't know if the customer didn't like the color or if something's wrong with it. If it's returned and doesn't fit back in the shrink-wrap. Giving it to an employee instead of throwing it away keeps it out of the landfill, at least.