Retail Shoplifting

My question involves criminal law for the state of: North Carolina

I was recently caught shoplifting at a store. I had just left the store with the merchandise under my clothes and the loss prevention guy tapped me on the shoulder and took me to his office. the merchandise was one button down shirt retailing at $89.50. the shirt had a security tag which i admitted to removing with my bare hands but caused no damage to the property or the security tag.

An officer came in and they all took my information. She issued me a citation with a court date. on the citation the crime is labeled as: "Larceny- steal, take away clothing the personal property of [store] such having the value of $89.50"

What am I in for when i appear for my court date. Is this crime considered a class III misdemeanor or class I? The LP guy said removing the tag with my bare hands was considered a class H felony so im not sure at all. What should I plead, and can i ask for a diversion program instead of service or fines? Will this remain on my public record forever, or is there a chance it can be removed after a period of time/payment of fines/etc.? I am 18 and this is a first time offense with no criminal record to speak of before this. Will this affect getting a job in the future?

I also currently work for a retail outlet(not the same chain that I shoplifted from) is there a chance that they will be notified and i am fired?

Your first court appearance will be arraignment; they'll ask you to enter a plea and *might* impose bail. Some standard tips for appearing in court, for your convenience.

As for a plea, you should plead not guilty. If you plead guilty, you are automatically convicted and sentenced for exactly the crime charged, with no possibility of diversion or having the charged reduced through plea bargain. Hire a lawyer before you appear for court if you can afford one; if not, ask for a public defender when you appear.

Any diversion programs available depend on your location and circumstances; your lawyer can help you get into one once you have a lawyer. Unfortunately, this IS going to remain on your record; I don't think North Carolina offers any possibility to expunge anything less than an outright acquittal or dismissal, and even then they limit the extent that you can get one. And yes, it may very well affect your ability to get a job in the future, especially in retail, and yes, if you work in retail, especially at a large chain, there is a very good chance that you will be fired for shoplifting. Many retail companies subscribe to the National Retail Theft Database; when you were caught shoplifting, your details were entered into the NRTD and if your employer subscribes to it, they will find out.

Here's what the North Carolina shoplifting law says:
State Statute 14-72.1 (d1)

Notwithstanding subsection (e) of this section, any person who violates subsection (a) of this section by using a lead-lined or aluminum-lined bag, a lead-lined or aluminum-lined article of clothing, or a similar device to prevent the activation of any antishoplifting or inventory control device is guilty of a Class H felony.

This is what the officer was talking about. I do believe NC considers the removal of any anti-shoplifting devise, by any means, to be a felony. Whether they actually charge you with that is up to the prosecutor.

If you Google 14-72. Larceny of property; receiving stolen goods or possessing stolen goods. you will find the entire statute. The punishment for a conviction of Theft - Willful Concealment is mandatory jail time which may be suspended only on conviction the defendant perform community service for a term of at least 24-hours.

Quote:

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Quoting TheArgumentative

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Your first court appearance will be arraignment; they'll ask you to enter a plea and *might* impose bail. Some standard tips for appearing in court, for your convenience.

As for a plea, you should plead not guilty. If you plead guilty, you are automatically convicted and sentenced for exactly the crime charged, with no possibility of diversion or having the charged reduced through plea bargain. Hire a lawyer before you appear for court if you can afford one; if not, ask for a public defender when you appear.

Any diversion programs available depend on your location and circumstances; your lawyer can help you get into one once you have a lawyer. Unfortunately, this IS going to remain on your record; I don't think North Carolina offers any possibility to expunge anything less than an outright acquittal or dismissal, and even then they limit the extent that you can get one. And yes, it may very well affect your ability to get a job in the future, especially in retail, and yes, if you work in retail, especially at a large chain, there is a very good chance that you will be fired for shoplifting. Many retail companies subscribe to the National Retail Theft Database; when you were caught shoplifting, your details were entered into the NRTD and if your employer subscribes to it, they will find out.

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Well what confuses me is that the LP guy was really cool and he first took me down he said that but later him and the officer were talking about it being a misdemeanor andhe told the officer to take it easy on me because i was very cooperative and instead of taking me to jail she gave me a citation. i asked him about getting it expunged or otherwise removed and he said there were plenty of ways to get it off and he was very cool about it. he told me he has been doing LP in NC for quite a while(10 years). so im assuming he was just lying to me and im pretty much ****ed?

I can't really hire a lawyer.. can i plead guilty but ask for a program to get it off my record? before i plead will the judge tell me what my punishment will be? the store has video evidence of my crime so if i plead not guilty i will most certainly lose... along with having to pay more money

Plead NOT GUILTY and ask for a public defender.

If you plead guilty, then you will have a worse criminal record and a higher fine. You plead Not Guilty and you have a good chance of either a diversion or first time offenders program, or a plea deal to a lesser charge. Your original charge will still show on a criminal background check.