hey mogie,
I live in Texas and was caught with $20 worth of stuff a few years ago at age 19. You basically show up in court, you sit and wait a long time though other people talking to the judge, then you talk to her and she acts like you are some kind of sewer sludge and you pay the court...
I was caught shoplifting three years ago at a grocery store. The ammount was less than $20, and the store recovered thier goods. I served community service and recieved deferred adjudication. Then I recieved a series of three letters threatning to sue if I did not send the store's lawyers $485...