Civil Compromise in a Theft Case

Allegations of theft usually take place at large retail stores like Target, Sears, and Walmart. These establishments have their own security protocols in place, including but not limited to: guards, cameras, detectors, and other devices. These steps prevent merchandise from being taken unlawfully.

Despite these steps, people will sometimes take an item without consent. When this happens, the injured store will send a civil restitution demand letter to the perpetrator. Further, a theft charge is usually filed against the individual shortly thereafter. A misdemeanor or felony carries possible jail time, fines, and a permanent criminal record, which could affect employment in the future. So, theft can lead to both a civil and criminal case.

Under California law, when a person is charged with a theft crime, like petty theft, there may be an opportunity to have the charge dismissed.

A civil compromise is one way that a criminal charge can be dismissed. Pursuant to Penal Code section 1378, an injured party may indicate to the court that it has "received satisfaction" for the injury. In other words, the victim of the theft can represent to the judge that there was an agreement made between the parties. At that point, the trial court, in its discretion, may stay the prosecution and order the defendant to be discharged. The case cannot be adjudicated again. Let me be clear though that the judge is not obligated to accept a 1378 civil compromise. Also, a victim may not be open to a civil compromise.

While every company does not offer this type of civil compromise, a criminal defense attorney can certainly explore this option.

Moreover, a civil compromise is not the only way to successfully defend against a theft charge. A defendant may be able to argue insufficient evidence, or mistaken identity. There have been instances where an employee at the store made false accusations. A video may vindicate a defendant.

Similar to a drug diversion, sometimes a defendant can even receive a conditional dismissal. A conditional dismissal means that a court will eventually dismiss the case after a condition has been met.

My office has negotiated conditional dismissals in past theft cases. For example, one client had his petty theft charge dismissed after he completed 10 hours of theft classes. Such plea bargains enable the defendant to avoid jail time and other negative consequences.

Regardless of the different ways a case can proceed forward, it is important to have a criminal defense lawyer retained on your case. Experience and commitment goes a long way in a theft case. We welcome your calls and questions.

Identity Theft

California Penal Code § 530.5 (a) Every person who willfully obtains personal identifying information, as defined in subdivision (b) of Section 530.55, of another person, and uses that information for any unlawful purpose, including to obtain, or attempt to obtain, credit, goods, services, real property, or medical information without the consent of that person, is guilty of a public offense, and upon conviction therefor, shall be punished by a fine, by imprisonment in a county jail not to exceed one year, or by both a fine and imprisonment, or by imprisonment pursuant to subdivision (h) of Section 1170.

Theft is not limited to personal property like vehicles, jewelry, and money. A defendant may also be charged with stealing or taking the identity of another. Identity theft is a felony that has gained the attention ion of the public. Technological and digital advances have made it easier for defendants to use an identity in an unlawful manner.

Even a simple “hack” of someone’s twitter account could lead to possible criminal liability under this statute. If a defendant used someone’s personal information to access a twitter account and post explicit information, without the consent of the accountholder, the defendant could be charged for identity theft because he committed an unlawful act. It does not have to be a criminal unlawful act; it could also be a civil tort.

Grand Theft Auto

California Penal Code § 487 (d) When the property taken is any of the following:
(1) An automobile, horse, mare, gelding, any bovine animal, any caprine animal, mule, jack, jenny, sheep, lamb, hog, sow, boar, gilt, barrow, or pig.

Grand theft auto is the crime of grand theft proscribed in subsection (d) of section 487 of the California Penal Code. Please see the section on “grand theft.” A defendant charged with grand theft auto may be able to face a less serious offense if he can prove that he did not intend to permanently deprive the owner of the vehicle. The crime of joyriding requires that the person intend to temporarily deprive the owner of the vehicle, and it usually is charged as a misdemeanor. It is important to be represented by an attorney in any legal proceeding. In the case you have been charged with grand theft auto, you need to have an advocate helping you to protect your legal rights.

Joy Ride Lesser Offense

California Vehile Code § 10851 (a). Any person who drives or takes a vehicle not his or her own, without the consent of the owner thereof, and with intent either to permanently or temporarily deprive the owner thereof of his or her title to or possession of the vehicle, whether with or without intent to steal the vehicle, or any person who is a party or an accessory to or an accomplice in the driving or unauthorized taking or stealing, is guilty of a public offense and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by imprisonment in a county jail for not more than one year or pursuant to subdivision (h) of Section 1170 of the Penal Code or by a fine of not more than five thousand dollars ($5,000), or by both the fine and imprisonment.

This crime is similar to grand theft auto in that involves a defendant taking a vehicle without the consent of the owner. Please see section on “grand theft auto.”

Typically charged as a misdemeanor, a defendant charged with this crime may be able to successfully defend on the theory of consent or lack of intention. Consent means that the owner of the vehicle gave you permission to drive the vehicle for a period of time. It is important to note that the defendant must stay within that scope of permission. For example, if a friend said that you may drive his Bentley to grab some groceries, you cannot drive the Bentley to Vegas. That would be outside of the scope of consent.

Our law office would also explore other defenses, like whether the defendant had the intent to deprive the owner of his or her title. Furthermore, with a crime like joyriding – police sometime engage in unconstitutional searches and seizures. We would be aggressive in our defense on possible constitutional issues.

Grand Theft

California Penal Code § 487. Grand theft is theft committed in any of the following cases: (a) When the money, labor, or real or personal property taken is of a value exceeding nine hundred fifty dollars ($950)…


The statute for this crime gets more complicated as it lists different ways in which a defendant may be charged for this crime. Furthermore, depending on the item stolen, the value needed for a grand theft may decrease to $250. Grand theft can also be committed in a myriad of ways. If you have been entrusted with property, and you embezzle it, you can be guilty of grand theft by embezzlement. If you defraud someone into giving his or her property to you so that you can permanently deprive them of it, you can be guilty of grand theft by trick. Regardless of how grand theft occurs, it is important that the person charged be represented by an attorney. Depending on the circumstances, we may be able to lower the charge to a misdemeanor.

Carjacking

California Penal Code § 215 (a). "Carjacking" is the felonious taking of a motor vehicle in the possession of another, from his or her person or immediate presence, or from the person or immediate presence of a passenger of the motor vehicle, against his or her will and with the intent to either permanently or temporarily deprive the person in possession of the motor vehicle of his or her possession, accomplished by means of force or fear.


This felony is not the same crime known as grand theft auto. Carjacking requires that the defendant take the vehicle with force or fear in the immediate presence of the owner or passenger. Therefore, if you have been charged with this crime and you believe that force or fear was not used, the prosecution may be unable to convict you. There are also many defenses available to a defendant charged with carjacking. A person may be wrongly accused of carjacking when there was an agreement for the defendant to borrow the car. A victim may also misidentify the defendant.

Petty Theft

California Penal Code § 488. Theft in other cases is petty theft. Shoplifting is a petty theft crime because a majority of the items stolen from a convenience store are valued under $950. Petty theft is the sister crime of grand theft and falls under the umbrella of “theft crimes.”

The crime may be a misdemeanor but that does not mean there are no consequences. A misdemeanor is on your record permanently and could affect future employment. It also carries a possible six month jail sentence, and three year probation period.

There is even the possibility that you pay a $1,000 fine. Attempting to steal a video game could cost you more than losing out on some quality gaming. It is always important to be represented by an attorney. Our office is aggressive in criminal defense and would explore all possible defenses, including the possibility that the defendant inadvertently held onto the merchandise as he or she exited the store.

Burglary

California Penal Code § 459. Every person who enters any house, room, apartment, tenement, shop, warehouse, store, mill, barn, stable, outhouse or other building, tent, vessel…with intent to commit grand or petit larceny or any felony is guilty of burglary…

This crime, typically referred to as a “breaking and entering,” could lead to a six year sentence, in the event of a conviction. Burglary comes with harsh penalties but it does not mean that the prosecution does not have to prove their case beyond a reasonable doubt.

The prosecution will have to prove every single element of the offense for there to be a conviction. The most litigated element is typically the intent to commit a felony therein. For example, a defendant would not be guilty of burglary if he entered a building for the purposes of committing petty theft. Petty theft is a misdemeanor, not a felony.

We can aggressively defend you against this criminal charge. Because burglary can be charged as either a felony or misdemeanor, depending on the circumstances of your case, it is important to seek representation immediately.

Burglary

Legislative Vigilante Justice

In late January, California Assemblyman Curt Hagman retrieved his car from valet parking at a Sacramento restaurant only to find that his back window had been smashed and his briefcase stolen.  Hagman, who owns a bail bond company, made news when he took matters into his own hands by tracking the suspects to a nearby gas station using a signal broadcast from his stolen iPad. The suspects took off but Hagman got the vehicle’s plate number. Police later found and charged the individuals responsible; however, Hagman never did get back his briefcase.

The fact that Hagman was almost run over by the suspects after confronting them at the service station highlights why you should never attempt to justice into your own hands. For our purposes however, his unfortunate experience also makes a great example of the crime of burglary. Under California law, a burglary is the entering of a premises with the intent to commit either a felony or a theft therein. While this definition may seem relatively straightforward, there are actually a number of nuances in the law; not the least of which is the fact that a burglary can be charged as either a felony or a misdemeanor depending on the circumstances.

Burglary Charges

To be convicted of a burglary, the prosecution must prove that a suspect 1) entered a 2) building (or other specified premises) with the 3) intent to steal something or commit a felony. If the premises in question is a residence (meaning a place where someone lives or sleeps, even if they are not home at the time) then the crime is a felony. If the premises is not a residence (such as a shop or warehouse) than the crime can be charged as a misdemeanor.

In general, courts have been fairly willing to broadly define what constitutes both a building and what it means to “enter” that building. The gist is that anytime you cross into someone else’s premises (either with a part of your body or an object you control) you have entered that premises. You don't have to go all the way in. Simply reaching into a window or knocking something off a ledge might suffice.

The law gets a bit trickier with respect to intent. Generally, if you enter the premises in question with the idea of committing a crime planted in your mind, you probably meet the intent requirement. The crime you intend to commit does not have to take place while you are in the premises. In fact, you don't even need to actually commit the crime at all; you just have to intend to do so at the time you cross into the premises.

Proving their case

Broad as intent might be under black-letter law, proving intent beyond a reasonable doubt can be very difficult. The prosecution will have to convince the judge or jury that you had a specific idea in your head at a specific time. Because only you know what’s going on between your ears, the prosecution must necessarily rely on what we call circumstantial evidence (unless you confess). For example, if you are caught breaking into a home with a lock-pick and a bag while dressed in dark clothing in the dead of night, there is good reason to believe you intended to steal something from that home. However, if you are charged with burglary for stealing something from a store, it may be harder to prove that you entered the store with the intent to steal; perhaps you really were there just to shop for groceries and made the decision to steal on an impulse.

The devil in the details

As with any crime, the devil is in the details. In our opening example involving Assemblyman Hagman’s stolen briefcase, a clear burglary took place. It’s almost certain that the suspects broke the back window with the purpose of stealing the case. However, even if they broke the window before they even knew the case was inside, they would have committed a burglary when they reached into the car to pick it up. This is because at the time the suspect stuck his hand past the invisible line where the window used to sit; he thereby crossed into a premises with the intent to steal and thus his actions seem to meet the requirements for a burglary conviction.

Because of the possible complexities involved in a burglary prosecution, its critical to contact an attorney if you or someone you know has been charged with this crime.