Foreign Student Accused of Shoplifting
hi, saw some of your posts on this forum and thought i'd reach out to you for some advice.
while shopping at a macy's in texas, i inadvertently walked out of the store with an earring worth $30 in my hand with the tag still intact; the beeper sounded at the entrance and was stopped by the store security. i explained to them that it was a horrible mistake and i had absolutely no intention of shoplifting it. they took my name down, gave me a no-trespassing ticket and mentioned there may be a fine for this incident. when i pressed that i did not intentionally take out the earring, they said that it was ok and asked me to go. they retained the earring and police were not called.
three weeks later i received a letter from macy's loss prevention department asking me to pay a fine of $325. i am a foreign student; i have the following questions -
1. what should i do next?
2. should i pay the fine?
3. should i consult a lawyer?
4. is there a legal or criminal implication/report?
please help!
A