Caught Shoplifting in Pennsylvania

My question involves criminal law for the state of: I live in PA. I feel like my life is spiraling out of control. I don't know why I was stupid enough to do such an action but I made the horrible mistake of shoplifting at Wal-Mart and was caught. I got a non-traffic/citations offense and I plan on pleading guilty because I AM guilty. I stole some makeup which came to the amount of 39.71 which is god awful. I was very compliant and they kept telling me it would be fine and that it's not the end of the world. However, I know it will not be fine and it is the end of the world for me. Currently, I am a junior in Social Work and I have royally messed up my life because of this. I have no history of any criminal activity what so ever and never plan on doing something so vile again. This is a first offense. I have to do pre-field stuff for next year and will have an FBI background check and all of that. At Wal-Mart I had to follow the cop to the police station where I was finger printed and this is now officially on my record.

I have to go and see the person to plead guilty to and pay fines I was told...or if I want to I can do a court thing? I am not sure. I would rather just beg and grovel as I hate myself with all the fiber of my being for my actions. I do not want to appear in court. Will I be arrested? The cop was very nice and said the lady in charge of everything was nice and that he would write that I was very compliant and well behaved. He also mentioned looking into getting an expungement months later to get my record cleared. Is this even possible? I have read otherwise that it takes a lot of work and up to a year. How long does it actually take? He also said I could petition myself somehow.

I just am really lost in life and don't know what to do anymore. I am ashamed and everybody is disappointed in me--especially myself. There is no excuse for what I have done. Will I not be able to continue my career in Social Work (which means my entire life to me)? Will it effect my graduation? Will it effect me doing pre-field activities? What are the consequences of my actions? Will I never be hired anywhere for any type of work? Will I never be able to do any type of helping profession again? I really want to help people in the future but at this point I can't even help myself. Somebody please help and tell me everything you know. I'm sorry. I just need to know what will happen and how it will effect my school/career. I should be graduating next year...but now...it's not looking good at all. I'm so sorry this was so long. I feel so guilty and am such a disappointment.

Dear,
This too shall pass. You have some bumps in the road ahead of you but this is not the career killer you might think it is. I am not a lawyer but I think this is only a misdemeanor and your remorse and willingness to "make it right" speak much for you. Plead your case to the judge and ask what you can do to minimize the damage. In many cases a Judge will see that punishing you too harshly for something like this will be counterproductive.
Meanwhile think about what led you to this action. How can this experience help you understand the problems and hardships of others? But more importantly, think about why you did this and if that "manner of thinking" can lead to other mistakes down the road.

Remember we are a nation of laws, responsibility, forgiveness for those worthy and redemption for those willing. Thank goodness we are not always held 100% accountable for our “youthful indiscretions”.

Good luck and relax

You will want a Criminal Defense Attorney.

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Quoting enstar

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Dear,
This too shall pass. You have some bumps in the road ahead of you but this is not the career killer you might think it is. I am not a lawyer but I think this is only a misdemeanor and your remorse and willingness to "make it right" speak much for you. Plead your case to the judge and ask what you can do to minimize the damage. In many cases a Judge will see that punishing you too harshly for something like this will be counterproductive.
Meanwhile think about what led you to this action. How can this experience help you understand the problems and hardships of others? But more importantly, think about why you did this and if that "manner of thinking" can lead to other mistakes down the road.

Remember we are a nation of laws, responsibility, forgiveness for those worthy and redemption for those willing. Thank goodness we are not always held 100% accountable for our “youthful indiscretions”.

Good luck and relax

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Thank you, enstar. I really hope it's not. It's always been my goal in life to help others but first I have to help myself like you said. I really am considering seeking counseling as I have been depressed a while with family deaths (a first one for myself) and other incidents. I'm not sure myself exactly what is going on or what possessed me to do this so I will have to dig deeper. That is definitely no excuse for my behavior or actions of course though. I am a young adult now and should be responsible. I wish I had made this error as a teenager instead if I had to choose a time. It's like I'm reverting backwards on the timeline of life. I have never even rebelled or done anything nor have I wanted to.

I just never thought I would ever make such a horrible error in my life. I really hope I can continue on with Social Work because if anything I want to use this experience to relate to others better and become more empathetic.

If I make any other mistakes in my life they will not be as grand as this and I will always be my usual paranoid cautious self. I will never do this again. Thank you so much yet again. It's just reassuring to hear anything like this. I really really appreciate it so much. I have felt so empty inside and useless along with just hating myself constantly.

I am not sure about hiring an attorney at this point as I don't want to put my parents through any more money and misery. The cop said if I plead guilty and pay the fines it should work out I think. I really hope so. I don't want to make it worse then it already is. Would an attorney really be beneficial in my case? I don't NOT plan on not pleading guilty. They have evidence, I am on camera. There would never be any denying it. The only thing I can see doing this is making the sentence lighter but I almost think it would be the opposite effect if I hired an attorney for this.

Sorry for the long responses, I know it's a pain to read it all or even want to respond back but I appreciate it yet again.

Hi,
I'm glad to see you are feeling better. I know theft is theft but don't be too hard on yourself. A theft of $39.71 is still a theft but it's not like you stole from your mother or a homeless orphan.
Once again, I am not a lawyer but see if your state has a a pre-trial diversion program. I suspect they will have you go through some kind of program and if you complete it properly you should have your record expunged after a certain amount of time. This is my guess anyhow.

Dont beat yourself up over the moral implications. Who is more guilty of a crime. You who stole less than $40 or the corporations who stole millions or billians from individuals or taxpayers and who havent been held accountable.Regarding if you should hire a lawyer. At this point you have already accepted guilt. All a lawyer can do is make sure you get a fair shake and minimize punishment. If money were no object I would hire a lawyer but I assume money is a consideration. Personally I would do my research. Maybe make some phone calls and find a sympathetic ear at the courthouse and try my own luck.

Dont be too hard on yourself. You are accepting the consequences of your actions, you have remorse and you are ready to make it right and move on. I would be proud if my own daughter handled it this way (after yelling at her of course :joyous:.
Don't beg or grovel to the judge. Show that you are strong and well grounded. Explain your actions and how you have learned from it and ask that you be able to make ammends without carrying the scarlett letter of a criminal record.
However, it is to be expected that you would have a record for some short time at least. That way if you were to repeat these actions ,and it wasnt just a one time thing, one could be warned of the potentiol for hiring such a person or having this person as a role model for others.
But I really believe this doesnt apply to you:friendly_wink:
Good luck dear and as I said before, This too shall pass.

You never want to plead guilty.

Plead Not Guilty, and ask for a Public Defender. If your parents can afford a lawyer, you will want one.

If you plead not guilty, the lawyer or PD then negotiates with the Prosecutor. You can ask about First Time Offender Programs, Adjudication Withheld, a plea deal to a lesser crime.

Expungment varies by state - it many, it takes YEARS. In others, it is not even a possibility.

If you plead guilty, it is on your record. I would also speak to your school counselor as to effects on your degree.

Thank you yet again, you two. I am feeling a lot better now but as mentioned previously it's going to be a while before I forgive myself. I hope time can help me out with that. Thank you enstar for putting it into perspective and understanding me, a complete stranger over the internet. It really is heartwarming. I'll never forget it. Thank you so much. It really gives me hope for there still being wonderful nice people out there too. My mom DID want to kill me and said some horrible things (god awful ones) but we have talked it out. I am so lucky to have a very loving family that will accept me no matter what. I don't even think they'll ever know how much I truly appreciate it from the depths of my heart as actions and words can only show so much.

I really would just rather accept what I've done and move on with my life along with trying to better myself then fight it. They have the evidence, it is there on camera. I know law wise it is probably better advice to do this or that...but I don't see how lying any more will get me further? I was lucky to have people that were even nice to me when all this was going on. It's not often that when you do a crime people will treat you nicely or you'll end up with decent people. I want to write a letter to the cop who treated me kindly too as it kept me from going completely insane while all this was going on.

Today I went with my dad to make an appointment but the stuff hadn't even been in yet. The woman at the desk said basically if I please guilty I will have to pay fines. It will be on my record, but I can go through a short program with people (humiliating but that's the point so I can learn), and then I can get it expunged shortly after that. That does not seem so bad to me or it's not as bad as I thought it would be. I'm not sure how long the expungement would take but it didn't seem as long as I thought it would be.

My father told me the woman is really nice and I am going to try to make an appointment with her either way when I get my summons. I have heard from other people that getting expunged did not take as long as they thought it would with more heavy crimes (although I won't be too hopeful). I want to let them know that I not there to cover my ass and I will accept what has happened, but that I want to make myself better from it and have a second chance. They can tell when you're lying. What's the point of doing that? I am glad my father went with me today and I was still crying even when just finding out what was going on.

As for speaking to the school counselor, I do not plan on doing anything until I am sure about what is going on. I will have to see what the future holds and go from there. I should be finding out sometime later this week.

If anyone else ever reads this board, and CONSIDERS at all ever shoplifting please don't. Please do not. It's not worth it. Not just for the moral implications, but for the consequences and how it hurts everyone around you. It is not an easy thing to do these days either. Cameras are everywhere and people are always watching. Once you do it, it can be addicting like anything else in life and that's unhealthy. Don't ruin your potential future. Thank you.

Just FYI - pleading not guilty does not mean, "I didn't do it". It means, "I am standing on my right under the Constitution to have the state prove me guilty". Different thing altogether.

Right, but since I have been told pleading guilty would simply make my life easier I think I will opt for that. Not to mention, I would rather not have a court session over this...knowing my luck it would only make it worse I think. Thank you though. I want to do what's best for my parents too as they are the ones helping me pull through this. We'll see what happens.

How will it make your life easier? If you plead guilty you are guaranted a criminal record that will follow you around for years. It will affect education; it will affect jobs.

If you plead not guilty, there is at least a chance that the charge can be reduced to something that will have less of an effect on your future. It might clear things out of the way faster if you plead guilty, but the after-affects will be around for much, much longer.