Fired for Theft?

[quad418]

So, here's my situation. I was recently fired from a bookstore where I worked (a large chain store) for a little over a year. I had recently had a performance review, and was given good marks and a raise. The store's old manager left, and was replaced by a new manager, whom I don't particularly get along with. I was called into the office by the store manager, and, along with another manager, was asked about some purchase orders with missing invoices. I looked through them, and was able to explain most of them. I became obvious to me that I was being fired, so I asked, and was indeed told that I was being fired for "integrity issues".

I don't really care about all this; I didn't really like the job anyway, and I have other resources available. What worries me is the implication of theft, and whether or not that could come back to haunt me later, mainly in the form of legal recourse. Can I be prosecuted for this? Civil proceedings? Essientially, the purchase orders were all recent, and, as invoices sometimes take a few weeks to show up, they weren't there. There were also some books that were on the shelfs, and, most alarmingly, some purchase orders that I had never seen before, and did not place. I think this is just a lame excuse for my manager to get rid of me, but could more happen? I don't really have the financial resources to fight something in court, and any advice anyone could give me would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Beth3]

Can I be prosecuted for this? If your employer makes a criminal complaint to the police and the district attorney finds there is sufficient evidence that you stole from your employer, yes.

Civil proceedings? Aggain, that's possible if your employer decides to sue you civilly for any items or moneys that are missing and ajudge/jury find you guilty.

No one here can tell you what will happen however. My guess is that if the employer had reasonable proof that you engaged in some sort of fraud or theft, the police would have already been contacted.