Consumer protection refers to the laws designed to aid retail consumers of goods and services that have been improperly manufactured, delivered, performed, handled, or described. Such laws provide the retail consumer with additional protections and remedies not generally provided to merchants and others who engage in business transactions, on the premise that the consumers do not enjoy a sufficient bargaining position with respect to the businessmen with whom they deal and therefore should not be strictly limited by the legal rules that govern recovery for damages among businessmen. The overarching goal is to protect individuals and the interest of the public in general from unfair and misleading activity in business and commerce (such as false advertising and deceptive trade practices) and scams perpetrated by criminals (such as identity theft and pyramid schemes) that harm a substantial number of consumers.
Mapaville is an unincorporated community in Jefferson County, Missouri. It is located about halfway between Festus and Hillsboro on Missouri Supplemental Route A. This area is believed to be the home of infamous bandit Jake Dallas, of the Cole Box gang, which robbed stage coaches and trains. The gang is best known for their gunfights with Sheriff Kyle Proemsey and his deputies including the hot-tempered Ryan "Quick Draw" Murphy. Although Dallas and the Cole Box gang were eventually gunned down by Proemsey and Quick Draw, their loot was long believed to be hidden beneath what is now Pure Pleasure Adult Superstore in Herculaneum. This rumor was proved erroneous (on all accounts) in 1985 when a large Discovery Channel Expedition to the site revealed nothing. A government cover-up is suspected.