Do you know for a fact that Eric Garner didn't legally buy the cigarettes he was selling? If the cigarettes were bought legally in the first place then the tax was already paid and local businesses were supported. We can't call what Garner did "indirect theft" without evidence he was illegally obtaining the cigarettes IMO.
Since none of us were there or personally know the family, I can only rely on reports like this:
"At the time of his death, the Port Richmond resident had three misdemeanor cases pending in Stapleton Criminal Court. He was free on $2,000 bail.
On Aug. 22 of last year, Garner was arrested on School Road and Bay Street, Fort Wadsworth, for allegedly driving without a license, according to a criminal complaint.
Garner, 43, gave cops a phony name and put himself in more hot water when officers allegedly found untaxed cigarettes and a small amount of marijuana in the 1998 Lincoln Navigator he was driving, the complaint said.
He was charged with aggravated unlicensed vehicle operation, false personation, possession or sale of untaxed cigarettes and marijuana possession, according to information from District Attorney Daniel Donovan's office.
Seven months later, while out on $1,000 bail, Garner was busted on March 28 for allegedly selling unstamped cigarettes on the street outside of 200 Bay St., Tompkinsville. He had 24 packs of untaxed smokes in his possession, police said.
Full article here:
http://www.silive.com/northshore/index.ssf/2014/07/eric_garner_who_died_in_police.html
The article is not a blog, but rather a Staten Island news source.