Is it Burglary to Use Somebody Else's Pass

My question involves criminal law for the state of: California
I went to a convention using a friends pass and when I ran out of money I made a very stupid mistake and tried to steal something. I had convinced the vendor to not press charges, however, i was taken to a security area and they had told me I had committed burglary because I was not using my own pass. They did ask me some questions, but the police were not called, they banned me for life escorted me off the premise and made a copy of my drivers license. My question is, can i still be charged with the felony because their enforcer said that he has a timeframe of 365 days to prosecute me if he wants. I had no intent to steal at time of entry it was a spur of the moment type thing because I was desperate and by the way the item i tried to take was $10 pepper spray. I am 20 years old and i cannot stand the thought of going to jail and becoming a felon.

I have been incredibly depressed and I need someone knowledgeable in legal advise to tell me if they were just trying to scare me because it definitely worked.

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My question is, can i still be charged with the felony because their enforcer said that he has a timeframe of 365 days to prosecute me if he wants.

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I am guessing that a year is likely correct.

The chances they will seek to have you prosecuted only they know. Often times if a merchant does not contact the police at the time of the incident, they do not prosecute but that is not written in stone.




are they going to ban your friend as well for allowing you to use his pass?

I think he was also banned. The merchant agreed not to press charges because I had apologized and convinced him I was not thinking of my stupid mistake. I keep trying to tell myself that there is virtually no evidence against me. I got there shopped around for an hour then tried to take the item, because of the large scale of a convention it would be hard to round up any witnesses. I'm still scared out of my mind though. I figure they are employing a scare tactic because they dont want to ruin a 20 something year old life on financial aid in college.

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Do you think they will not report the charge because of the lack of evidence? The charge of burglary by the enforcer is really scaring me, but there is no way he can prove i had intent to steal before i entered with another persons pass.

And one more question if they do choose to prosecute how will they notify me? They have my drivers license info, will they send me mail or something? I live about an hour and a half away from the place.

apparently they witnessed you stealing. That is enough to convict you.

beyond that, you obviously confessed to the act after you were caught.

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Do you think they will not report the charge because of the lack of evidence?

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they have plenty of evidence. It may not be enough to convict of something that requires prior intent but make no mistake; they have plenty of evidence to convict you of some crime.

The state has three years in which to initiate action for a felony of burglary, and one year for petty theft. I doubt they would make a case for burglary on this, and I seriously doubt that if they let you go they are going to call the cops now.

You should be clear, but you may never be permitted back to the convention again.

If they called the police, the police would almost certainly attempt to get a statement from you. if they cannot get a hold of you for whatever reason, then a warrant could be issued for your arrest. But, as I said, if the cops weren't involved at the outset, odds are no report to the police has or will be made.

oh god... so can they only proceed on a misdemeanor charge?

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Quoting cdwjava

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The state has three years in which to initiate action for a felony of burglary, and one year for petty theft. I doubt they would make a case for burglary on this, and I seriously doubt that if they let you go they are going to call the cops now.

You should be clear, but you may never be permitted back to the convention again.

If they called the police, the police would almost certainly attempt to get a statement from you. if they cannot get a hold of you for whatever reason, then a warrant could be issued for your arrest. But, as I said, if the cops weren't involved at the outset, odds are no report to the police has or will be made.

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Thanks for easing me a little bit... Do you think they were just trying to scare the crap out of me? I figured because stores usually do that.
And yes im definitely banned forever.

Going down the road you are headed, pepper spray won't protect you. Vaseline might, to some extent.

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Quoting Kes1

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oh god... so can they only proceed on a misdemeanor charge?

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If there is no probable cause to believe a felony was committed, and the nature of the offense only gives rise to misdemeanor allegations, then, yes.

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Thanks for easing me a little bit... Do you think they were just trying to scare the crap out of me? I figured because stores usually do that.
And yes im definitely banned forever.

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Yes, it sounds like they were trying to scare you.

Thank you cdwjava, this is the first time i've ever done something like this and I dont think i ever will again. No cops were ever involved during the whole thing so I did feel a little safer. I have a few last questions though, the security enforcer guy "said" he sent my drivers info to the LAPD, would they have a general record on me if he actually did it?

And by the improbable chance (as described by you fellow members) they do decide to convict, how will they notify me if they only have my address?

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Quoting Kes1

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Thank you cdwjava, this is the first time i've ever done something like this and I dont think i ever will again.

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It's easy ... just DON'T do it again. When you say "I don't think I will ..." it tells me that theft is, to you, a viable alternative. It's not like accidentally rolling trough a stop sign you didn't see, you make a decision to steal. You simply choose NOT to steal or defraud ... it's really quite an easy decision to make.

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No cops were ever involved during the whole thing so I did feel a little safer. I have a few last questions though, the security enforcer guy "said" he sent my drivers info to the LAPD, would they have a general record on me if he actually did it?

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I don't know why LAPD would want your driver's info unless they keep a record of alleged shoplifters. I have not heard that they do, but, maybe. And i doubt they or the LA DA's Office have the time to pursue petty thieves well after the fact.

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And by the improbable chance (as described by you fellow members) they do decide to convict, how will they notify me if they only have my address?

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They would not decide to "convict," they would choose to prosecute. A conviction comes after a guilty verdict is reached.

They can contact you through your address via mail or via an officer knocking on your door. They might issue you a summons to ourt by mail or in person, or come and arrest you on a warrant. Odds are slim that either one will occur, and there is no practical way to know if they ever did turn your name into the LAPD or any other law enforcement agency. So, you can choose to panic and wring your hands for the next one to three years, or just get on with life and choose not to steal any more.

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Quoting cdwjava

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It's easy ... just DON'T do it again. When you say "I don't think I will ..." it tells me that theft is, to you, a viable alternative. It's not like accidentally rolling trough a stop sign you didn't see, you make a decision to steal. You simply choose NOT to steal or defraud ... it's really quite an easy decision to make.


I don't know why LAPD would want your driver's info unless they keep a record of alleged shoplifters. I have not heard that they do, but, maybe. And i doubt they or the LA DA's Office have the time to pursue petty thieves well after the fact.


They would not decide to "convict," they would choose to prosecute. A conviction comes after a guilty verdict is reached.

They can contact you through your address via mail or via an officer knocking on your door. They might issue you a summons to ourt by mail or in person, or come and arrest you on a warrant. Odds are slim that either one will occur, and there is no practical way to know if they ever did turn your name into the LAPD or any other law enforcement agency. So, you can choose to panic and wring your hands for the next one to three years, or just get on with life and choose not to steal any more.

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Yeah i guess i chose my words poorly, I WONT STEAL AGAIN. Oh and i guess i didnt make it clear that my case happened in LA, just to clear any confusion. The guy wasnt randomly sending it to the LAPD. Thanks for all the help, my mind is at ease.

And one last question cdwjava, in your sig it says, A Nor Cal Cop Seargeant, are you saying you are an officer? It's okay if you don't want to answer, but it would be much nicer to know that I was getting advise from an officer.

EDIT: Never mind that last question, I just looked at your profile and saw your occupation, thank you so much for the help.

People tend to think...the busier they are...the less they notice. Nope. They have more people on watch actually.....

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Quoting PandorasBox

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People tend to think...the busier they are...the less they notice. Nope. They have more people on watch actually.....

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I've been to quite a few cons before, the amount of people stealing at them is ridiculous...

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Quoting Kes1

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I've been to quite a few cons before, the amount of people stealing at them is ridiculous...

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and apparently at least a few of them do get caught.

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Quoting jk

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and apparently at least a few of them do get caught.

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heh, they sure do. I guess I should consider myself very lucky.

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Quoting Kes1

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heh, they sure do. I guess I should consider myself very lucky.

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I agree. It could have just as easily turned into a criminal charge.

I just realized that this might not have been a felony anymore anyways. Since I was able to convince the vendor to not prosecute, the only charge was "stealing" from the enforcer because I had entered the con without having payed for a pass myself. I remember him clearly saying he had that whole 365 to prosecute thing. cdwjava had mentioned that felony or burglary has a 3 year prosecution timeframe. I guess the enforcer realized I was only committing a misdemeanor when i had told them the vendor would not press charges and the cost of a pass is well below the petty theft limit, because he mentioned the petty theft timeframe and not the felony one.

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Quoting Kes1

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I figure they are employing a scare tactic because they dont want to ruin a 20 something year old life on financial aid in college.

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Here's a newsflash for you: "THEY" are not the ones ruining ANYTHING! Your actions dictate what "THEY" do.

I would hazard a guess that they couldn't care less what does or does not get ruined because of what you chose to do.