Legal Question in Criminal Law in Tennessee

Hello,

I live in Tennessee, and about a year ago I was in a store and decided to walk out of the store without paying for an item that was under $20. I have never done this before, and havent done this since. I'm much too old to even try something like this, and to be honest, I cant tell you why I even tried it. I had $500 cash in my purse, and had money in my bank account. I am absolutely disgusted with my actions, and even thinking about what I did makes me feel such a huge amount of guilt. I was confronted by a police officer before walking out of the store, and was taken to a security room. The officer went through my purse and told me that the store would not ban me from visiting again, but told me if I ever tried it again he would take me to jail. I did have to sign a paper saying that I would go to court on a specific day. I am assuming that was an arrest. My memory is foggy because I was so nervous and scared. I did not go to court on that day. I was late to court that day because I was coming back in to town from an out of state family funeral. I thught I'd make it in time, but did not make it to court. I guess that I will have a failure to appear warrant for my arrest, but my question is is there a statute of limitations on this crime? If so, does that mean I will not be actually charged with this crime, but will stilll have the arrest warrent to deal with? This incident happened 1 year ago. Thank you for any help that you can provide


Asked on 11/01/15, 10:22 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Eugene Belenitsky Eugene L. Belenitsky, Attorney At Law

What you received on the day you stole from the store was a citation in lieu of arrest, T. C. A. � 40-7-118(b)(1). You were probably charged with theft < $500, a crime with maximum punishment set at 11 mo 29 d, pursuant to T. C. A. � 39-14-103.

If you never done this before, it is sometimes possible to have this resolved with alternative sentencing and diversion or a theft cessation class. Judicial diversion allows for expungment of the record upon completion, T.C.A. � 40-35-313.

The citation required you to show up in court or have a warrant issued for your arrest. It is also possible to be charged with a misdemeanor or a felony offense for failure to appear, T.C.A. 39-16-609. Since you were charged with a Class A misdemeanor theft, you may now be charged with a Class E felony (1-6 years) for failure to appear under T.C.A. 39-16-609(e).

The statute of limitation is not applicable to you as to the theft charge. The SOL is tolled after you receive a citation and are required to appear in court. If SOL were applicable, then the DA could not prosecute you after one year because this is a misdemeanor, pursuant to T. C. A. � 40-2-102.

You should contact a local criminal defense attorney right away and follow his advice on how to proceed.

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Answered on 11/02/15, 6:39 am


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