Shoplifting is an enormous problem that costs an estimated 10-20 billion dollars per year to U.S. businesses alone.
As you can imagine, the severity of this is reflected in the law, so what happens if you get caught shoplifting over 18?
Since you are no longer a minor, the best you can hope for is civil restitution where you can essentially pay the store not to press formal charges. More likely, however, you’ll be getting a Class C misdemeanor if you took less than $100 of items, which carries a $500 fine. If the value of the items taken is more than $100, then you could be looking at fines, jail time, and even community service afterward!
This is really just a summation, however, so today we’re going to explore what happens if you get caught shoplifting over 18 in a little more detail.
We’ll give you a hint – it’s not pretty and you’d be well-advised to get a lawyer immediately – shoplifting is serious business.
What is ‘civil restitution’ and why is this a good thing?
Civil restitution is a form of compensation that is paid to the store in order to avoid getting formal charges. What usually happens is that a person is ‘caught’ shoplifting and detained until they agree to sign paperwork for the store.
At this time, they are told that they will need to pay a fine, which is assessed based on the number of items that they tried to take, and usually a certain amount for the security costs involved in catching them.
What this usually amounts to is a fine of $50 to $500 dollars, and while you might think that you can just ignore it, this is NOT a good idea. If you do not pay this fine, then the store may forward surveillance footage from the shoplifting attempt directly to the police, and this is where things get expensive and you might even be looking at jail time.
To better understand this, let’s take a look at the types of charges that actually come with shoplifting from the perspective of the law.
What kind of charges am I looking at for shoplifting over 18?
If the theft was for a value under $100, then this is generally considered ‘petty theft’ and a first time offense will probably result in a fine of up to $500 from a ‘Class C misdemeanor’ charge.
Keep in mind that we are giving you estimates here, as laws will vary from state to state.
If the items were valued at over $100, but less than $750, then this is considered a ‘Class B’ misdemeanor, and at this point, the fines may be up to $2000 and you could get up to 180 days in jail. Now, let’s say that you left with electronics or medications and the total is over $750, but under $2499.
This means it’s a Class A misdemeanor and you could get a fine of up to $4000 and up to a year in jail! As we stated before, shoplifting is taken quite seriously by the law.
We should also point out that just because you made it out of the store with a single charge or even no charge, you aren’t out of the woods yet.
You could even be caught ‘after the fact’
Just about every store that you go into these days has surveillance cameras, and while this lets them watch people live, that footage is also being saved and this could come back to bite you later.
Stores, especially retail giants like Wal Mart or Target, also tend to retain that surveillance footage for periods of time anywhere from months to even YEARS.
So, if a security guard sees you coming in the store a lot and never buying anything, or simply always buying small items, then they might get curious and look at the footage.
If they see something suspicious, then even if they don’t know you, they might pass along the footage directly to the police or to loss prevention agents in the store.
These days, everyone has a social media page, and if a loss prevention associate finds out your name by hunting you online, then you might get a letter in the mail asking for civil restitution or they might simply send your information to the police and a warrant could be issued for your arrest.
This sort of scenario doesn’t happen every day, but it CAN and DOES sometimes. The likelihood is also higher if you’ve just been caught and if someone reviews a month of footage and sees you shoplifting or concealing items, then you could potentially have multiple charges waiting for you and be looking at a lot of potential jail time as a result.
Shoplifting isn’t ‘cute’ or ‘fun’ – it could potentially cost you a lot of money and even your future prospects when you find that you can’t get a good job because of what employers.
Read also >> What Happens If You Get Caught Shoplifting Under 18?
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Retaining a lawyer is definitely in your best interests.
If you aren’t lucky enough to get civil restitution as an option and are instead arrested or otherwise formally charged, then it is in your best interests to retain a lawyer immediately.
While you could rely on a court appointed lawyer, if you can get the funds to hire someone then you will get a much better outcome.
Court-appointed lawyers typically juggle too many cases at one time and may push you to take a quick plea deal, and while they might provide good advice, there is no guarantee that you’ll be getting their best performance.
A lawyer that you’ve hired, however, can explain the charges to you and give you the best chances that you’re going to have to avoid jail time. In some cases, for instance, you may qualify for programs where you agree to take certain classes and to perform community service and if you finish the program, then charges may be reduced or even dropped completely.
Remember – the fines are expensive anyways – so spending money now on a lawyer should be considered a consequence of your actions and since it’s the best way to get a ‘fair shake’, this should be your first priority if you have been caught and charged with shoplifting.
Getting caught multiple times is even worse
We should also mention that being caught multiple times in some states may produce consequences that are definitely more than you bargained for.
Texas is a good example of this – if you are caught shoplifting 3 times, then it automatically becomes a FELONY, and you could end up spending years in jail just because you didn’t want to pay for a Coke and a candy bar.
This is yet another reason why getting a lawyer is vital – they know the law and you DON’T – and relying on the advice of friends or something that you read on Quora could be a big mistake that costs you your savings and maybe even your freedom for the next 3 – 5 years.
In closing
Today we’ve talked about what happens if you get caught shoplifting over 18 and as you can see, it’s definitely no picnic.
As an adult, if you get charged then the very least, you’ll get is up to a $500 fine, but if you took over $100 worth of items then that fine could be up to $2000 and up to 180 days in jail.
It only gets worse after that – so be sure to get a lawyer. By retaining legal assistance you’re going to get the best chances that you’ll have at putting this behind you and getting your life in order so that it doesn’t happen again.
It’s expensive and multiple offenses could even cost you your future by preventing you from getting any good jobs that will require a background check.
So, if you’ve been caught shoplifting, it’s time to get a lawyer and get this taken care of, and most importantly do NOT do it again. It’s not worth your future!
Reference Source
https://www.avvo.com/legal-answers/what-happens-if-you-get-caught-shoplifting-and-you-1548625.html