First Offense Shoplifting at Walmart in Pennsylvania

My question involves criminal law for the state of: Pennsylvania

About a week ago my friend and I were caught shoplifting in a Walmart in PA. As we were leaving a young gentleman, I would say early 20s, stopped us as we were leaving. He told us to return the items that were in our purses and proceeded to take us back into a room. In the back room, there was another gentleman like him, and I believe 2 security officers, neither one identified themselves. They had us empty our purses and pockets and my friend and I complied. The total amount my friend took was $30 and some cents, however they confiscated something that was in her purse that she did not take from Walmart, but because the one security guy said they had it "on hold", they took it anyways and included that in the stolen merchandise. The total amount for mine was $7 and some cents. The one security guy also said he was not going to call the cops, but the cops still showed up. They took down our addresses, social security number, what we were currently wearing, etc. In addition, my friend and I had to sign a form regarding being banned from Walmart. Also, they explaind that we would be getting a civil letter in the mail with a fine being about $150.00. When the cops came in one of them took me outside into the hallway, asked me what happened, why I did it, my phone number, etc. He then got on the phone and ran my drivers license to see if there were any priors. He said it was my first offense, which was true, and also said to whoever he was talking to on the phone, mark it as an incident or something about an incident number. He did the same with my friend. The cop never mentioned anything about fingerprinting nor did he give us any paperwork such as a citation or information about being criminally charged. I was just wondering what the chances were of us being criminally charged and what exactly may happen. Believe me, I know what I did was wrong and its been on my conscience since it happened (which I well deserve). I was mortified and am sick to my stomach that I committed such an immoral act. Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank-you!

Keep an eye on your mail. You will likely receive a court date. You definitely will receive a letter from WalMart's attorneys for a Civil Demand to be paid.

Stay out of all WalMart and Sam's Clubs. Give it a while and you can write the Corporate office and ask permission to shop there again, just don't do it until you receive a letter giving you permission.

Now I have another dilemma, the address on my license is not where my permanent residence is, it is my mother's address. She travels a lot for her job so she is very rarely ever home, how do I go about making sure it gets to the address where I currently reside? In addition, about how long till I receive a letter? Also, should I hire a lawyer? I don't want to have anything on my record which would hinder me from future employment. Thanks again for your help and advice.

Sorry, one last thing, is this going to appear in the newspaper?

It could appear in the newspaper - if your local paper publishes a Crime Blotter.

As for the address, you can go to www.usps.com and pay the dollar to have your address updated and mail forwarded. You really don't want to miss either letter. Missing the court date can result in an arrest warrant and more legal trouble. Missing the Civil Demand can make the amount double.

Hire a lawyer once you get the Court summons. Though it is not a bad idea to start talking to lawyers now.

You also need to contact the DMV and get the address on your license updated. You are required to do so by law. If the address on your license is out of date, you will get no sympathy from the court that you didn't get your notice. Also, if you have red light or speed cameras in your area, any resulting citation will be sent to the address on your license and registration. If you don't receive it because you failed to notify DMV, that's on you and you get stuck with the consequences of an unpaid ticket.

Thank you very much for your advice I greatly appreciate it. My last question is if I or another company run a criminal record check on myself this week will it show up or does it only show up after I plead guilty or not guilty? During the time it happened the police did not give me a citation nor did they ask me to go down to the station to be fingerprinted. I still have not received anything in the mail regarding a court date, which is understandable because I have read that it usually takes awhile.

Again thank you very much for your help and knowledge!

It all depends on what kind of records check is made. Most private companies can only get records for convictions. However, if you are applying for a law enforcement position, a defense contractor position that requires a security clearance, or similar position, then any arrest will likely also be seen. But, since it does not seem that any charges have yet been filed, there is likely no record for this incident…yet.

However, if you are talking about a background check for employment, it could come to light later and seem that you failed to disclose it.