Joel Stallworth and Tamiya Dickerson say their 18-month-old son loves basketball, so when they were strolling the Third Street Promenade and saw the Nike store, they decided to go inside and buy him a basketball.
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When they tried to leave, Stallworth and Dickerson said they were humiliated in public because a store employee didn't think they had paid for the ball.
Video shows a dispute between a store employee and the parents, with police at the scene.
The couple eventually showed police their receipt to prove they had purchased the ball and were told they could leave.
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Instead, they went back inside to the store and returned the ball for a refund.
The parents have hired an attorney.
Eyewitness News has reached out to Nike and to Santa Monica police for comment.