A friend of mine got caught shoplifting in 1996 at a dept. store called Clover that went out of business in 1996. She got pulled over and got a ticket for a bad inspection and when she went to go pay the ticket, they said she had a warrant for retail theft from 1996. I have two questions about this situation: who would be the plaintiff for a store that went out of business 10 years ago and isn't there a statute of limitation on charges and warrants?
2006-08-04 05:32:41 · 6 answers · asked by stacianastacia 2 in Politics & Government ➔ Law Enforcement & Police
A lot of times you can call a lawyer and get free. basic and definitive advice. I bet this is such a case.
There sometimes are quirks in the law, and the statute can be extended for up to 10 years in some cases -- in a criminal case, the state is the plaintiff, it's People v. Unlucky Jane Doe, so the nonexistence of Clover doesn't matter.
Anyway, call a local lawyer!
2006-08-04 05:45:14 · answer #1 · answered by TxSup 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
There might be a statue to limitations. Theft is a crime against the people, not the individual store. You would be charge by the state which the store was originally residing. The fact that it is out of business is moot.
You have two separate issues here: The original theft and the the warrant. There are statue of limitations on both. It would appear that the statue of limitations is not up on the warrant.
I am not a lawyer so I am only providing a layman's opinion. I would call qualified council before taking anything said on this forum as gospel.
2006-08-04 13:12:10 · answer #2 · answered by Mr. PhD 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The plaintiff is the state. The fact that the store went out of business means nothing.
There is no statute of limitations issue here, as the identity of the offender was already known. Warrants are valid until the case is discharged, the warrant is quashed, or the subject dies.
2006-08-04 12:45:38 · answer #3 · answered by Bostonian In MO 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes there is a statute of limmitations. the charge will most likely get thrown out of court or dismissed. as far as the plantiff goes, when you are charged with a crime, even if the plantiff drops the charge, or is unable to go forward with case, the state attorney's office can pick it up, and proceed with the charge. tell you friend to get a lawyer, is she can't afford one get a public defender. it's probably a misdemeanor, so she will have to pay the money or do some community service if they don't drop it altogether.
Good Luck!!!!
2006-08-04 12:43:23 · answer #4 · answered by bella 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If your friend failed to pay a fine or whatever she needed to do, a warrant was then issued. The warrant will still be there until it is resolved through the issuing court.
2006-08-04 12:46:44 · answer #5 · answered by ? 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If she has not made some sort of restitution, I certainly hope she is made to do so. Shoplifting is one of the things that causes small stores to go out of business. Sad.
2006-08-04 15:25:16 · answer #6 · answered by scruffycat 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋