| Did a Police Officer Tell You Not To Worry About Your Case? "You won't go to jail" "The judge or store will drop the charges" "You don't need an attorney just plead guilty" A police officer is promoted based on the number of arrests and convictions he makes. The Police are not on your side, but they are allowed to give you this impression to get you to admit to guilt. As you can see the penalties below are serious and will affect you for the rest of your life. We can help call our office at 1-800-974-4487 for a free in office private consultation. |
The Law: What is Shoplifting Simplified Version
| The Law and Penalties for shoplifting are listed below. The penalties are based on the value (price) of the merchandise taken. Please note that even if the value of the merchandise is only $1.00 you can still be charged with Shoplifting and still face up to 180 days in jail. Value of Merchandise is less than $200.00: Shoplifting is a disorderly persons offense if the full retail value of the merchandise is less than $200. Sentence if found Guilty: Up to 180 days in Jail plus fine, plus community service as indicated below. Case will generally be heard in Municipal Court with a Judge Trial. No Jury is available. These are the penalties for a first offense. Click here to learn about additional penalties for all offenders. If a second offense same penalties as above but add additional community service time as indicated below. Value of Merchandise is between $200.00 and up to $500.00 Shoplifting constitutes a crime of the fourth degree if the full retail value of the merchandise is at least $200 but does not exceed $500. Sentence if found Guilty: Up to 18 Months in Jail plus fine plus community service as indicated below. Case will be heard in Superior Court with a Judge or Jury Trial. Click here to learn about additional penalties for all offenders. If a second offense same penalties as above but add additional community service time as indicated below. Value of Merchandise is more than $500.00, but less than $75,000.00 Shoplifting constitutes a crime of the third degree if the full retail value of the merchandise exceeds $500 but is less than $75,000, or the offense is committed in furtherance of or in conjunction with an organized retail theft enterprise and the full retail value of the merchandise is less than $1,000. Sentence if found Guilty: 3 to 5 years in Jail plus fine, plus community service as indicated below. Click here to learn about additional penalties for all offenders. Case will be heard in Superior Court with a Judge or Jury Trial. If a second offense same penalties as above but add additional community service time as indicated below. Value of Merchandise is $75,000 or more Shoplifting constitutes a crime of the second degree if the full retail value of the merchandise is $75,000 or more, or the offense is committed in furtherance of or in conjunction with an organized retail theft enterprise and the full retail value of the merchandise is $1,000 or more. Sentence if found Guilty: 5 to 10 years in Jail plus fine, plus community service as indicated below. Case will be heard in Superior Court with a Judge or Jury Trial. If a second offense same penalties as above but add additional community service time as indicated below. Additional Penalties for All Grades: Community Service Required: In addition to the penalties noted above, any person convicted of a shoplifting offense shall be sentenced to perform community service as follows: for a first offense, at least ten days of community service; for a second offense, at least 15 days of community service; and for a third or subsequent offense, a maximum of 25 days of community service Presumptions. Any person purposely concealing unpurchased merchandise of any store or other retail mercantile establishment, either on the premises or outside the premises of such store or other retail mercantile establishment, shall be prima facie presumed to have so concealed such merchandise with the intention of depriving the merchant of the possession, use or benefit of such merchandise without paying the full retail value thereof, and the finding of such merchandise concealed upon the person or among the belongings of such person shall be prima facie evidence of purposeful concealment; and if such person conceals, or causes to be concealed, such merchandise upon the person or among the belongings of another, the finding of the same shall also be prima facie evidence of willful concealment on the part of the person so concealing such merchandise. Definition of Shoplifting: Shoplifting shall consist of any one or more of the following acts: (1) For any person purposely to take possession of, carry away, transfer or cause to be carried away or transferred, any merchandise displayed, held, stored or offered for sale by any store or other retail mercantile establishment with the intention of depriving the merchant of the possession, use or benefit of such merchandise or converting the same to the use of such person without paying to the merchant the full retail value thereof. (2) For any person purposely to conceal upon his person or otherwise any merchandise offered for sale by any store or other retail mercantile establishment with the intention of depriving the merchant of the processes, use or benefit of such merchandise or converting the same to the use of such person without paying to the merchant the value thereof. (3) For any person purposely to alter, transfer or remove any label, price tag or marking indicia of value or any other markings which aid in determining value affixed to any merchandise displayed, held, stored or offered for sale by any store or other retail mercantile establishment and to attempt to purchase such merchandise personally or in consort with another at less than the full retail value with the intention of depriving the merchant of all or some part of the value thereof. (4) For any person purposely to transfer any merchandise displayed, held, stored or offered for sale by any store or other retail merchandise establishment from the container in or on which the same shall be displayed to any other container with intent to deprive the merchant of all or some part of the retail value thereof. (5) For any person purposely to under-ring with the intention of depriving the merchant of the full retail value thereof. (6) For any person purposely to remove a shopping cart from the premises of a store or other retail mercantile establishment without the consent of the merchant given at the time of such removal with the intention of permanently depriving the merchant of the possession, use or benefit of such cart. Shoplifting is a Theft Offense: NJ Theft charges/offenses are categorized in four different degrees depending on the amount alleged to have been unlawfully taken as indicated above. Thus, a conviction for shoplifting is considered not just merely shoplifting but theft, and as such the person is called a theif. Shoplifting is merely a new word for an ancient crime which has been around since the birth of time. To learn more about theft offenses click here. To learn more about the consequences of a conviction click here. If you have been charged with theft don't just hire any attorney hire Attorney Aalsberg he has over 7000 satisfied clients and can get you results. Call today and find out how he can help you. The call is free the advice may be priceless. * Please consult a lawyer for complete details on all fines and penalties as the penalties listed in this notice are for informational purposes. Past performance is not indicative of future performance and each case is fact sensitive, thus, the need for the in office consultation for the attorney to evaluate your case. Some penalties may not apply to out of state residents please consult an attorney in your state of residence. All penalties listed are accurate as of January 3, 2010 and are subject to change at any time without notice. H. Scott Aalsberg, Esq., P.C. Main office address: 39 Milltown Road, East Brunswick, N.J. 08816. Commentary: Quirks in the Law do exist. For example for the lowest offense no presumption against incarceration (jail) exists for a first offense so a person convicted of shoplifting could go to jail up to 180 days. Call our office at 1-800-9-RIGHTS to set up a free in office consultation to see if you qualify for a diversionary program for your offense. Diversionary programs may not be available for non US citizens. 98% Success Rate refers to the percentage of cases in which our office has either reduced the original charges, had the charges downgraded to a lower offense, won the case or simply reduced the penalties the client was facing such as a possible 18 months in jail was reduced to mere probation and a fine and or community service. |
| H. SCOTT AALSBERG, ESQ., P.C. "When Winning Counts" 98% Success Rate of Reducing or Eliminating the Penalties* |
Helping Shoplifters Get Not Guilty
Verdicts for Over 17 Years
Verdicts for Over 17 Years
| Fact #1 If you have been charged with Shoplifting, the charges will probably be proven in court by the following method:
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| Fact #2 Once Shoplifting charges are filed with the police the store cannot on its own accord dismiss or reduce the charges, Thus the need for Expert Representation |
FACT #3 We have a 98% Success Rate of Winning Reducing Downgrading, or Eliminating the Penalties. Why Go To Anyone Else |
| H. SCOTT AALSBERG, ESQ., P.C. "The Shoplifters Attorney" 39 Milltown Road, East Brunswick, N.J. 08816 1028 Route #23 North, Wayne, N.J. 07470 1-800-9-RIGHTS or (732) 257-5040 www.shopliftersattorney.com "our name says it all" |
| Free Office Consultation 1-800-9-RIGHTS |
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