Petty theft misdemeanor charge

[brokecollegekid]

Hi there.

I recently made a very, very big mistake and shoplifted. It was a stupid, petty crime and I very much regret it. I 100% am going to follow every step the court needs, as well as the company that was stolen from.

I am in Maryland.

This is my first ever offense - I've never gotten a ticket for absolutely anything, even speeding.

I know for sure that I will be billed by the company that I stole from. The total charge for the company is $180. I have to go to court (I haven't gotten a date yet, waiting on a letter). I've done some research and the maximum fine for a shoplifting misdemeanor in MD is a $500 fine and potential jail time.

I just want to know what to expect for a ballpark number in terms of how much of a fine that they will actually request so that I can start getting the funds in order. I don't even know if they will for sure charge a fine, so I was wondering if I could get opinions on how likely a fine actually is.

Thanks so much. Again, I very much regret this mistake and would like to pay my dues and be done with it as soon as possible.

 

[quincy]

Hi there.

I recently made a very, very big mistake and shoplifted. It was a stupid, petty crime and I very much regret it. I 100% am going to follow every step the court needs, as well as the company that was stolen from.

I am in Maryland.

This is my first ever offense - I've never gotten a ticket for absolutely anything, even speeding.

I know for sure that I will be billed by the company that I stole from. The total charge for the company is $180. I have to go to court (I haven't gotten a date yet, waiting on a letter). I've done some research and the maximum fine for a shoplifting misdemeanor in MD is a $500 fine and potential jail time.

I just want to know what to expect for a ballpark number in terms of how much of a fine that they will actually request so that I can start getting the funds in order. I don't even know if they will for sure charge a fine, so I was wondering if I could get opinions on how likely a fine actually is.

Thanks so much. Again, I very much regret this mistake and would like to pay my dues and be done with it as soon as possible.

Here is a link to the civil penalties: https://law.justia.com/codes/maryla...icial-proceedings/title-3/subtitle-13/3-1302/

In addition, court costs and reasonable attorney fees can be awarded the merchant in a civil action.

Good luck.

 

[FlyingRon]

As Q says, you're likely to have to pay 2x the value stolen in a civil demand (this is not a FINE, it's restitution for the damages you and your kind cause the merchant).

What you should be saving your pennies for is a lawyer. You don't want to just show up in court cold and plead guilty. First offenders in Maryland can often get a probation before judgement which avoids you receiving a criminal record. Lawyers are going to run you a few thousand. There's an additional criminal courts fee of $130 in addition to the $500 fine (which is what you'd likely get). There may be other costs assessed as well.