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How Much Money Can a Store Demand in Payment when Detaining You for Shoplifting

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  • 10-05-2010, 02:17 PM
    Donna Joyce
    How Much Money Can a Store Demand in Payment when Detaining You for Shoplifting
    My question involves criminal law for the state of: My question involves criminal law for the state of: New Jersey.

    I was recently detained for shoplifting at a local well-known department store chain. The value of what I took totalled $505.00. All of the items were made available to the Loss Prevention staff and were in proper condition to be put back on the floor for sale.

    The Loss Prevention staff then went on to bring up my charge account, and hold me accountable for any and all returns I had made in the last year that were made without a receipt. Their position was that the items must have been stolen and they were going to hold me responsible for reimbursing them for these returns.
    I of course wanted to do all I could to avoid the police being involved, so I went along with their program. It resulted in my writing a check to the store for over $1200.00 (for returns made to my charge account, that were honored at the time I returned them, but were now being held against me). I also had to write a separate check for $1050.00which represented (7) civil charges against me (@$150.00 each), for the seven returns I had made without a receipt.
    I wanted to express that I felt it extremely unfair and unfounded to hold me accountable for stealing something that (1), you cannot substantiate and (2) was honored by the store at the time of the transaction.
    I have learned my lesson and am not making any excuses for my behavior, but I do have a very bad taste in my mouth for how this was handled. I think they took full advantage of the fact that I was fearful of police involvement, and held me accountable for items that I told them were not taken.
    Please let me know your thoughts. I am very interested to hear if this is a common procedure.
  • 10-05-2010, 03:05 PM
    LawResearcherMissy
    Re: How Much $ Can a Store Demand in Payment when Detaining You for Shoplifting
    Quote:

    The value of what I took totalled $505.00.
    Taken in aggregate, that's felony theft.

    Quote:

    I also had to write a separate check for $1050.00which represented (7) civil charges against me (@$150.00 each), for the seven returns I had made without a receipt.
    In the state of New Jersey, merchants are permitted to demand a Civil Penalty of $150 for each occurrence of shoplifting.

    It could have been a lot worse. They could have demanded the Civil Penalties AND brought in the police AND dragged you off to court.
  • 10-06-2010, 09:04 AM
    PandorasBox
    Re: How Much $ Can a Store Demand in Payment when Detaining You for Shoplifting
    Honey, you got off easy with no police involvement.

    In addition to the Civil Demand penalties for each incident....you would have also had:
    - Court costs and fines
    - Probation, Community Service, or anti-shoplifting class (these cost $300+)
    - A record of a Felony Arrest, which would make your job options very limited.
    - Mugshot and fingerprints on file.
    - The expense of hiring a lawyer to represent you in court (since you could write those large checks, I don't think you would have qualified for a public defender...Add in another $1500+ for a lawyer)

    By the way.....$505 shows you have shoplifted before, and had you gone in front of a judge, the judge would take notice of that.

    Suggestion: Get some counseling or into Shoplifters Anonymous, or an anti-shoplifting class. You got off very lucky this time....don't think you will get off so easy the next time.

    Also...stay out of that store, and all their other locations. You can be arrested for Criminal Trespass should you step foot in that store again.
  • 10-06-2010, 10:30 AM
    BOR
    Re: How Much $ Can a Store Demand in Payment when Detaining You for Shoplifting
    Donna, how did they give a cash credit for an item with no receipt?

    Every store I have even been in will not give a cash refund without a receipt!!

    Assuming this was done, to total over 1200 would seem to substantiate probable cause you took the itmes.

    This is a lawyer in NJ:

    When a shopkeeper, security guard, or police officer has probable cause to believe someone has shoplifted and has purposely concealed items on him, the shopkeeper can detain the shoplifter. Probable cause requires the shopkeeper to have a reasonable basis to conclude that theft has occurred. Additionally, the theft must have occurred in front of the shopkeeper.


    http://criminal.findlaw.com/articles/000069.html

    This is the detention statute though.

    To demand payment for the items returned + accessing a Civil demand for each is legally questionable as the alleged theft was not witnessed.

    However, if there were MULTIPLE returns, that is a strike against you.

    It is probably not legal in a "technical" sense, however, if you wanted to keep the police out of it, you succeeded probably.
  • 10-06-2010, 11:36 AM
    antrc170
    Re: How Much $ Can a Store Demand in Payment when Detaining You for Shoplifting
    I noticed that you didn't deny having stolen the returns that you complained about, only tha the store couldn't substantiate that you stole them. Interesting...I think you got off easy. $3000 to avoid a felony conviction, prison or probation time, and the embarrassment is pretty good deal.
  • 10-06-2010, 01:13 PM
    PandorasBox
    Re: How Much $ Can a Store Demand in Payment when Detaining You for Shoplifting
    Having worked retail: It depends on the store as to if they give cash for a return without a receipt (usually at last sale price); or a Merchandise Return Card. Some give it directly to the credit card the person thinks they used in the transaction.

    That said - they also require a signature of the person. And let's face it - 7 "I forgot to save the receipt" purchases in a year is unusual. And especially when you have a person shoplifting $505 in a single trip.

    Many people will shoplift and item, then return it for the money/credit. This is all too common.
  • 10-06-2010, 02:36 PM
    davidmcbeth3
    Re: How Much $ Can a Store Demand in Payment when Detaining You for Shoplifting
    I think that the store cannot use the threat of calling the police to settle a civil matter on their end. You may have a civil case against them. Its like blackmail .. check your state's case law. And if so, it would probably destroy any criminal case against you as well. I know in my state that if you say "pay up" or I'll call the cops, it will end up that the threatenor (word?) would be guilty of a felony.
  • 10-06-2010, 06:54 PM
    Security Consultant
    Re: How Much $ Can a Store Demand in Payment when Detaining You for Shoplifting
    Quote:

    Quoting BOR
    View Post

    This is a lawyer in NJ:

    When a shopkeeper, security guard, or police officer has probable cause to believe someone has shoplifted and has purposely concealed items on him, the shopkeeper can detain the shoplifter. Probable cause requires the shopkeeper to have a reasonable basis to conclude that theft has occurred. Additionally, the theft must have occurred in front of the shopkeeper.


    http://criminal.findlaw.com/articles/000069.html

    Here's what the NJ Merchant's Statute actually says: "A law enforcement officer, or a special officer, or a merchant, who has probable cause for believing that a person has willfully concealed un-purchased merchandise and that he can recover the merchandise by taking the person into custody, may, for the purpose of attempting to effect recovery thereof, take the person into custody and detain him in a reasonable manner for not more than a reasonable time, and the taking into custody by a law enforcement officer or special officer or merchant shall not render such person criminally or civilly liable in any manner or to any extent whatsoever.

    Any law enforcement officer may arrest without warrant any person he has probable cause for believing has committed the offense of shoplifting as defined in this section.

    A merchant who causes the arrest of a person for shoplifting, as provided for in this section, shall not be criminally or civilly liable in any manner or to any extent whatsoever where the merchant has probable cause for believing that the person arrested committed the offense of shoplifting."
  • 10-07-2010, 09:18 AM
    BOR
    Re: How Much $ Can a Store Demand in Payment when Detaining You for Shoplifting
    I understand the shoplifting detainment law, the crux here is, if they had legal authority to demand payment for alleged fraudulent returns when they did not witness her actually take the items returned.
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