Caught Shoplifting First Offense

[Kammiem13]

My question involves criminal law for the state of: North Carolina
Okay so I'm 19 and last night I was caught shoplifting a t shirt a two toys (I know stupid please don't remind me I feel bad enough already this guy im friends with convinced me it would be fine I know I can't blame him it was my fault I had the right to say no and just not do it. )it added up to be like $21.24 the lady took me into the back and said she was going to call the police. This has been my 2nd time getting caught shoplifting there. (The first time. Was a few months ago it was $9 worth of makeup and the lady said she was just giving me a warning. Well last night she was looking for my name in the system and couldn't find it. (Apparently she didn't save my name in her system) so I was put in it again and banned for a year. The officier came and was really cool about it he said since I had a clean record I would just get community service and a fine. He gave me a citation and I have court next month. What is going to happen? Will I go to jail? The police guy told me that if I do my probation and community service it could go from a misdemeanor to a infraction and be dismissed. What should I do? I really am sorry and this was the only time I've ever shoplifted I swear just those two times. It was a stupid mistake and I don't want it to ruin me. I'm an idiot and made a dumb mistake that will affect the rest of my life but what should I do??? How much will the fines be?? The lady told me I'll have to pay walmart for the items (she said they couldn't be resold I'm not sure why tho) the officier soda he would be there but that lady from walmart won't. Help pleas

[cbg]

A mistake is when you wear two different shoes. On two occasions, you made the deliberate choice to steal.

So tell me again, why is it that you should not have any lasting consequences? You didn't learn anything the first time you caught a break; why should we believe you'll learn if you catch a second one?

[Mr. Knowitall]

This question has been answered literally hundreds of times. Here's a typical answer.

You can see what information you can find on the court or prosecutor's website, or from a local criminal defense lawyer, about the availability of diversion or deferred dispositions that would allow you to avoid a conviction and whether you qualify....

There are hundreds upon hundreds of threads in this forum asking essentially this same question. Read some of them.

[flyingron]

Officer Friendly isn't too far off. You usually can qualify for having the judgement continued until you complete probation (shoplifting class, community service, stay out of trouble). However, it would still be better if you consulted an attorney. Eligibility and availability varies. Further at many stores (including Walmart) you can expect to get an letter from the store's "lawyers" demanding civil restitution.