Legal Question in Criminal Law in Washington

Re: Shoplifting Under $200

If the offense occurred in Ellensburg, you will have several alternatives to a conviction. First, you must enter a plea of Not Guilty at your arraignment.

One alternative is a compromise of misdemeanor, wherein the merchant expresses no objection to a dismissal of the criminal charge in exchange for restitution (value of item plus an amount not to exceed $200). Do not pay the civil penalty in response to a demand letter. Be advised that several local merchants will not participate in such an agreement.

Another is a stay of proceedings, which is essentially a continuance of your case for 1 year with conditions, e.g. restitution, community service, etc. If you comply with the conditions, the charge is dismissed at the end of the year.

You should seek competent legal counsel to thoroughly review the strengths and weaknesses of your case and to ensure you thoughtfully consider all of your options.

Re: Shoplifting Under $200

What were you thinking. I assume you are a US citizen and do not have to worry about getting deported. If you aren't, write back so I can give more advice. The charge you face, assuming you didn't run from the police or struggle with store security or something else to make things worse, is simple theft--likely theft in the third degree, a misdemeanor. The first thing you need to do is calm down and slow down. There is no hurry. These cases take a long time. It might be a long time before you even receive a summons to court. Up to three years. When you do get the summons, go to court and ask about getting the assistance of a public defender. They are the most experienced defense attorneys around and go for a great price--free. Listen to what they have to say and hire a lawyer for a second opinion if you don't like it. Don't retain the other lawyer. Just hire for a consultation. You will likely plea bargain the case into a dismissal for a period of good behavior. The three things you do not want to do: 1) Get a new charge in the meantime, 2) miss the court date when it does come so keep your address updated with the DOL, and 3) pay civil restitituion to the store. The store will likely send you a notice for payment. I recommend that you not pay it. Often they will agree to a "compromise of misdemeanor" in exchange for payment. That is, they recommend the criminal charge gets dismissed. However, if you've already paid them, they usually don't care what happens to you on the criminal charge. There goes all of your bargaining power.