Fight Your Pennsylvania Retail Theft / Shoplifting Charge!
Under Pennsylvania criminal laws, Retail Theft (aka shoplifting) can be a serious felony criminal offense, and requires quality, experienced legal counsel to help defend against the charges. Depending on the value of the property stolen, and prior offenses, it may be a felony or misdemeanor offense (see below), but any criminal charge is serious, and can have significant consequences that affect the rest of your life.
If you exercised poor judgment and stole something from a store on an impulse, you probably feel terrible about what happened. But don’t beat yourself up. We all make dumb mistakes. That doesn’t mean your deserve to be branded with a permanent criminal record!
And of course, if you are being falsely accused, then we can challenge the shoplifting case in court.
Either way, this is not something to be taken lightly. Call us to find out what I can do to help you out of this mess.
Pennsylvania Retail Theft Penalties
Retail theft is charged as a third degree felony in cases where:
- The value of merchandise involved is over $2000; or
- The item stolen is a car/automobile, or a firearm/gun;
- It is a third (3rd) or subsequent retail theft offense.
A Felony in the third degree (Felony 3), has a maximum penalty of up to 7 years in prison.
Retail theft is charged as a first degree misdemeanor in cases where the value of the item taken is greater than $150. A 1st degree misdemeanor (Misdemeanor 1) has a maximum penalty of up to 5 years in prison.
Retail theft is charged as a second degree misdemeanor in cases where the defendant is accused of a second offense retail theft charge, and the value of the item taken is less than $150. A 2nd degree misdemeanor (Misdemeanor 2) has a maximum penalty of up to 3 years in prison.
Retail theft is charged as a summary offense in first offense cases, and the value of the item taken is less than $150. A summary offense has a maximum penalty of up to 90 days in jail.
Please call for a free consultation if you’ve been arrested or accused of shoplifting or retail theft in Pennsylvania. We can offer you some advice on what you can do, and suggest some possible defenses, and how we can help you. There’s no obligation, and the consultation is strictly confidential, even if you don’t choose to hire us. Call now.