18-Year-Old Caught Shoplifting, First Offense

My question involves criminal law for the state of: Oklahoma

My two sons were caught shoplifting at JCPenney; amount of stolen items was $140. One son is 16, the other is 18. Neither has ever been in trouble before, no criminal history. Basically the 16 year old was the instigator, & for whatever stupid reason the 18 year old went along with it. He had left the store & was in his car when his brother got caught. The security guard asked where his buddy went, so he called his older brother & told him to come back, so they both got tickets & court dates. I'm furious with both of them, but very afraid for the 18 year old. He's finishing his senior year & has been accepted into college; how is this going to affect that?

I've been trying to find out what to expect, so I think that trying to get diversion is the best outcome. How likely is that? I know I need to talk to a lawyer, & I will on Monday. We really can't afford a lawyer, but we will find a way if having one would increase his chance of diversion. If he can get diversion, what will that entail? Will he be allowed to move away for college in 5 months?

If he can't get diversion, what will happen? Will he be on probation? Will he be able to go to college?
What will happen at the 1st court appearance? Should he try to get character references, would that help?
If anyone has any advice, I'd really appreciate it. Thank you.

What will likely happen is he will graduate from college with a criminal record. I suggest you hire a lawyer and attempt to get diversion, otherwise college is likely a waste of money.

You really need lawyer.

Since both were shoplifting together...this can be seen as a lot more than simple shoplifting. Now you have two people entering a store with a plan to shoplift, therefore...they can face more than Misdeamnor Theft each. They can Larceny.

And I hate to tell you...but chances are this is not first time shoplifting, but first time being caught.

The time for your 18 year old to have thought about college was BEFORE shoplifting.

Since the cases are linked, you need a lawyer....for both. If he can't get diversion, he gets to have his job options limited for many years. The 18 year old will likely spend 7 years with his name listed in the National Retail Theft DataBase. No Divisersion Program = difficulty finding employment; apartment complexes can refuse to rent to him. And there are a lot of career field he won't be working in.

Again...see a lawyer. 2 shoplifting kids = it's gonna be expensive.

- - - Updated - - -

Um...just looked up Oklahoma's laws.

You really want that lawyer. Unless you want your 18-year-old living in your basement for 10 years past the date of conviction. Keep in mind...expungment does not happen at 10 years you file it, wait for a court date, wait for fingerprint clearance to be done, hope the court approves, and wait for filing. So you're really looking at your 18 year old being 29.....


Misdemeanors:

you have not been convicted of any other crime (misdemeanor or felony), and;
no felony or misdemeanor charges are pending against you, and;
at least ten (10) years have passed since the conviction;

- - - Updated - - -

There's also certain career fields he won't be working in.

Retail.
Working with the elderly/disabled.
No accounting firm will take a shoplifter. He won't be working in a bank.
He won't be working in a pharmacy.
He can work flipping burgers, but he won't be cash handling.

Seriously, both kids need a lawyer.

Thank you for the replies. I will definitely get a lawyer. I'm just trying to find out as much as possible so I know what we're facing.

The police officer that came to the store told both boys that since they had no criminal history, this was like a traffic ticket. The ticket says Petit Larceny; the officer said it was a misdemeanor. Will they change the charge from a misdemeanor to a felony? I wish he hadn't minimized it like that. I've done volunteer work with the Juvenile Court, so I have a better idea of what to expect there, and I thought diversion was a likely option for the 16 year old. I have no idea what to expect with the 18 year old.

Thanks again for any advice.

Never listen to a cop who says it is like a traffic ticket.

Diversion is possible for the 18 year old, but he will still have a probationary period before the record is set aside.

As to the 18 year old....I'm sure he has in mind what he wants to study in college...he needs to find out how deep background checks are for positions in that career field. And also hope his name doesn't make the local paper Crime Blotter, because even when a probationary period is over, unfortunately it's easy peasy to type his name into Google.

I'm really annoyed that the cop said its like a traffic ticket. My 18 year old is terrified; he's physically ill over this, as he should be. The 16 year old took that cop's words to heart, and he really believes its just like a traffic ticket, no big deal. The police officer had to call me from the store to get my permission to release the 16 year old to his 18 year old brother, so I talked to him a little. He told me that it was an option to take the 18 year old to jail, but that they were going to give him the ticket and release him. He scared me talking like that, so I'm not sure why he downplayed it to the boys.

We have a friend who is a probation officer, I talked to him briefly but I'm going to talk to him again tomorrow to find out exactly what to expect during the first court appearance and to get lawyer recommendations. He said with a first offense, he could just get assessed a fine at the first court appearance and that would be it, but he said we should at least ask about diversion so that it doesn't go on his record. He actually said with diversion, it would never be on his record at all if he completes the diversion requirements, unlike a deferred sentence. I still think that sounds like the best option, but I'll find out as much as I can before court.

The 18 year old went back to JCPenney this morning, without telling anyone, to apologize to the LP and the manager. I would have advised him not to do that, if I'd known, but this is eating him up and he needed to apologize. He said they were both very nice and willing to talk to him; they thanked him for coming in to apologize. I know that doesn't change anything, but I still asked my probation officer friend if he had made a mistake by doing that; he said no.

Thanks again for the replies; it really helps to know what to expect.

You didn't know the kids were going back to JCPenney today?

Ok, I'm gonna sound like a bitch...who is the parent? You or the kids? Time to give them some Tough Love. Your house, your rules. Your 18 year old is lucky he didn't get arrested for Criminal Trespass. AND...his going back and offering an apology...he just gave JC Penney more evidence against him.

Don't talk to anyone else....just a lawyer. You talking to your probation officer friend, if you and kids and their lawyers force a trial, your friend may have to testify....for the Prosecution.

The "kids" didn't go back, just the 18 year old. He was never banned from JCPenney; neither of them were. If he'd asked me, I would've said don't go, but he is 18 and this is his mess. I don't know how that gives JCPenney more evidence; the kids had the stolen stuff on when they were caught and they gave it back to the LP guy, so its already cut and dried that they took it without paying. My son specifically apologized for his behavior, using that language, so he didn't say "sorry for stealing". I don't think it would matter even if he did say that, they admitted to everything yesterday. They can't be any more guilty than they already are.

My friend isn't stupid; he's been a federal probation officer for over 20 years. If it wasn't a good idea for me to talk to him, he'd have said so upfront. I'm going to trust the advice of a 20 year law enforcement officer, and based on that, I'm sure there won't be a trial.

I don't think you sound like a bitch, and I do appreciate all the advice. But not every shop lifting charge ends up in a trial or with thousands of dollars in fees and fines. After talking with someone who actually has law enforcement experience, I am a lot less worried than I was yesterday after getting all my information from message boards like this. I understand the reason for the scare tactics here, and I certainly have given my kids the worst case scenario, because I want them to be scared and sorry for what they did. But the reality is, for a first time offense in municipal court, he could very well walk away with diversion, whether we have a lawyer or not, even though he went back to JCPenneys today, and even though I talked to my friend. I do want to know the worst case scenario, but for my kids, the worst case scenario isn't likely, and it isn't always helpful to only assume the worst. I'm not downplaying what they did; I take it very seriously and I hope the judge chews them up and spits them out in court. But I needed to know realistically what to expect, so I could be prepared, and I didn't get realistic info here.

Not worth answering.

You got the best advice one can get in post 2. Without the lawyer diversion may or may not be an option if its a good ol boy court. In those courts, diversion is granted because you paid a fortune for the lawyer initially. We have not gotten to the civil demand which will coming in the mail for both boys. If he walks in there without a lawyer it is like sending him to college without a high school degree.