Their argument was that I chose to resign after the travel plans were made. Further, we did not part on good terms, so they were anxious to squeeze every last drop from me that the could. I was so unhappy at that company, known for being cheapskates, that I just said "fine, take it from my final payout." They did and the travel agent e-mailed me a copy of the cancelled e-ticket for future reference.
They thought I was using them to take a free vacation after I quit.
Petty? Well, I no longer work there. What does that tell you?
I would never have given in so easily. That is simply ridiculous. If anything, simply ignoring the request would've ended it. They can't dock pay or final vacation pay in California anyway.
I would be sure to inform all former colleagues at that organzation about this potential risk, and encourage them to buy only refundable tickets, or only tickets on the day of departure to ensure they won't get shafted like this.