If I was charged with petty theft if under 300$ if the stolen item was returned could owner not press charges?

Question

I live in FLorida

I did not actually steal it I was given a notice to appear in court because I was driving the vehicle the person who stole it ran as soon as I stopped for the police

Answer 1

OWNER COULD DROP CHARGES BUT DOES NOT MEAN LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT/DISTRICT ATTORNEY WILL.

Answer 2

The victim has no say in whether or not charges are brought. That decision is up to the district/commonwealth attorney. If the property is returned, the judge will be more likely to sentence you according to the lower-end of the guidelines. However, returning the property does not negate the crime, it is all about intent and action.

I would strongly advise you to return the property and write a note of apology to the victim as soon as possible (i.e., before court). Then advise the district/commonwealth attorney (as well as the judge) that you have done these things. Then, as I said, the judge will be more inclined to go easy on you during sentencing.

Then again you could get lucky and the charges could be dropped.

Edit: In response to Benjamin T: Nice try, but no cigar. In the case you cited witness saw the woman get into the car after stealing clothing and she was in the car when the authorities stopped them. In the case at bar, as I understand it, no one witnessed the actual "thief" getting into the suspects car and the suspect was alone when the authorities stopped him/her. The case you cited did not deal with who commited the theft, but whether or not the driver assisted in the crime. The woman was already known to have been the individual who stole the clothing. The question before the court was, did the driver have knowledge that the clothing the woman brought into the car was stolen? In the present case, no one witnessed the other individual actually steal the item in question or bring it into the vehicle. In a situation like this, if a stolen item is found in a vehicle it is assumed it was put there by the owner/driver of the vehicle. The only way to get around this is if a passenger or other individual confesses that the item was put there by them. If a witness had seen the other person bring the item into the car then the case you cited may apply, but that is not the case. Very different fact patterns. Raising this case would only irritate the judge.

Edit: Fla. Stat. § 812.022(2) ...proof of possession of property recently stolen, unless satisfactorily explained, gives rise to an inference that the person in possession of the property knew or should have known that the property had been stolen.

Benjamin T: Please ask for a refresher crim law course. How does fleeing a vehicle give an inference to guilt in regard to every possible crime revolving around the vehicle? Also, since this is Yahoo Answers and I am not writing a brief or memorandum I did not see the necessity in citing case law to STANDARD and ACCEPTED rules of law. There is an inference that the owner/driver of a vehicle, with stolen property inside (not in someone else's possession), is the party in possession of the stolen property.

Third Year Law Student and Judicial Clerk

Answer 3

restitution. originally restitution was a means to giving back what was stolen and was to be used along with punishment. these days, it's more of a form of legalized extortion to get back what was stolen in exchange for dropping the charges. for $300, it might be okay for you, that is: if the owner of the stolen property doesn't want to continue with charges and if you have no priors, prosecutors might not even bother. petty theft kind of takes a back seat to violent crime (which is much more newsworthy too) and a lot of times, the law enforcers don't want to spend time and resources on petty crimes. good luck.

Answer 4

Yes the owner could waive their right to press charges. However, the state can still press charges against you. More than likely for petty theft the state will drop the charges if the victim of your crime advocates they do so.

Behave yourself,

Good Luck and Take Care

Answer 5

The owner of the property might drop the charges but as to whether you'll be prosecuted is up to the prosecuting attorney and that will never happen. You might be allowed to plead to a lesser charge in exchange for a guilty plea to the lesser charge.

Answer 6

Returned or not if it can be proven that you stole them in the first place...... you can be charged. If there are no witnesses, nothing could be proved. If you are caught you might think about apologizing and saying you see the error in your ways. Offer to pay restitution above and beyond in installments. Depends though on the details.

Answer 7

The owner can choose to not press charges, but does not have to.

Answer 8

the owner can drop charges if he was the one who brought the charges up to court.

Answer 9

That would be up to the owner (perhaps to teach you a lesson, he could go ahead with the charges)

Answer 10

The item was stolen, rather you returned it or not. You will be charged.

Answer 11

They could because the crime has already been committed. I would get on my knees, beg forgiveness, and mend the error of your ways. It's worth a shot given the alternative.