Legal Question in Criminal Law in California

Re: The Risk

I've read Miller's and Logan's responses, and they're both good, but general, and not specific to your particular situation. I recommend that you have a consultation with a criminal lawyer in your area. The answers to most/all your questions are negotiable in advance, and the sooner you get a lawyer working on it, the better. Most criminal lawyers give free consultations. If your matter is in LA, don't hesitate to call me for a free consultation. Steve Mandell 310 393 0639

Re: The Risk

to answer your questions:

1. Theoretically, you could be prosecuted criminally. The attorney prosecuting you would be the District Attorney. Before you could be prosecuted, (a) the company would have to file a omplaint with the police department, (b) the police would have to present the case to the DA, and (c) the DA would have to decide to file the case. There are a couple of reasons why this is unlikely. First, you admitted the theft and have already given the money back, so it would be difficult for a DA to get a jury angry at you. Second, you have no criminal record, so the DA would probably be pressured by the judge to let you plead guilty to a misdemeanor. Third, there doesn't sem to be anything about your case to make it interesting to a DA. Embezzlement is not a "hot button" issue like domestic violence or drug dealing. Since the DA has total discretion whether to file the case, it seems likely that they will choose to use their limited resources on other cases that have more potential to make them look good.

2. Your ex-employer was right to refuse to promise not to turn you in. If you know about a crime and you don't report it, that is not illegal. However, if you know about a crime and you make a deal with the criminal not to report it, that IS illegal. It could even be considered blackmail (extortion) if they used the threat of reporting you to get you to pay the money back.

3. If you are prosecuted, you will probably be offered an opportunity to plead guilty and receive a suspended sentence, or even probation. Even if you were not offered such a deal, if you plead guilty at an early stage, most judges would not send you to prison on a first offense, nor would they make you pay a large fine.

Re: The Risk

Thanks for your posting. I have clients in your situation at least 1-2 times per month, and they always want to know whether to pay the money or not. I usually recommend not paying until you get some agreement in writing that they will not prosecute (a civil compromise). Otherwise, you have no incentive to pay if they are going to institute charges against you anyway.

To answer your other question, a case is started when the company calls the police, and the police forward the results of their investigation to the prosecution, in this case the District Attorney. The District Attorney then decides what charges to file.

The sentencing range, or what sentence you are potentially looking at, depends on what you are charged with, exactly, for example, embezzlement, or grand theft. Although the fact you've paid won't stop prosecution, it is normally a factor that works in your favor, and will be seen as "positive" by the prosecutors. You will not be required to pay back restitution as part of your sentence if resitution has been made in full.

I hope this helps, and if you have any other questions, please feel free to email me.