Shoplifting, Larceny, Robbery, Theft Help!

[Needhelpquick02]

I was caught shoplifting in Illinois. I know! I feel terrible!!!! The amount of money that was not paid for was $61 and the police were called I only got a ticket but it was for $200!! Is that right? I'm 18 and what can I expect from this? Will it stay on my record??

 

[army judge]

If you plead GUILTY or are CONVICTED, it will forever stain your once, lily white record.
You might be offered some sweet sounding deals, no matter what anyone says, you'll still end up with a misdemeanor theft related conviction, should you plead guilty or be adjudicated GUILTY.

So, appear at the appointed hour, on the appointed date, plead NOT guilty, ask if you can have a PUBLIC DEFENDER appointed to assist you.
If you don't get a PD, you'll have to HIRE your own lawyer, or pretend to be a lawyer and try to see if you can get a good deal.
As far as fines and costs, if convicted, $200 plus fees, and court costs, so expect the FINAL amount to be HIGHER.
Not to worry, payment plans are often available to pay that debt to the state.

Good luck.

 

[Needhelpquick02]

Thank you for your response! I forgot to mention that the officer who wrote the ticket told me I have 15 days to pay the $200 or I can not pay the $200 and go to court but will probably have to pay more for the court fees.

 

[army judge]

Thank you for your response! I forgot to mention that the officer who wrote the ticket told me I have 15 days to pay the $200 or I can not pay the $200 and go to court but will probably have to pay more for the court fees.

I would check that with a local lawyer.
You can meet with one in your county often for no charge.
Most of the time you'll have 20-30 minutes to discuss your case and ask questions.
After talking to a local criminal defense attorney, you'll have real information to use to decide what works best for you.
Good luck.

 

[shrinkmaster]

I am a retail theft consultant and answer questions like yours daily. You need to check on this $200.00 it could be considered a guilty plea and result in a conviction record. It might be wiser to go to court talk to a lawyer and seek a plea deal that wont stain your record like ACD or Diversion

 

[Needhelpquick02]

Okay thank you! But I can't afford a lawyer. What should I do?

 

[CdwJava]

As was mentioned, if you decide to go to court you can request appointed counsel. However, if your offense does not require or allow for jail time you may not be permitted to have legal counsel appointed for you.

I would recommend you ask a local attorney for a consultation and decide if the best course of action might be the $200 fine. This fine might be something less than a bookable misdemeanor and may be the equivalent of a traffic citation ... do you have the specific code section for which you were cited? And, in case it is a local ordinance, what city did this occur in?

 

[mightymoose]

It sounds like an infraction citation.

 

[CdwJava]

It does. Just not sure where these might fall in other states. In some places these are referred to as "violations," and in others they use other terms ... not sure what the equivalent term might be in IL for fine-only offenses.

 

[Needhelpquick02]

Is the code the incident #?

As was mentioned, if you decide to go to court you can request appointed counsel. However, if your offense does not require or allow for jail time you may not be permitted to have legal counsel appointed for you.

I would recommend you ask a local attorney for a consultation and decide if the best course of action might be the $200 fine. This fine might be something less than a bookable misdemeanor and may be the equivalent of a traffic citation ... do you have the specific code section for which you were cited? And, in case it is a local ordinance, what city did this occur in?

Is the code the incident #? On the ticket it says in violation of chapter 6 section 5-8