Nassau County has earned a reputation for taking shoplifting (petit
larceny) cases particularly seriously. Many people, unfamiliar
with the Nassau County criminal justice system, mistakenly assume that a
person arrested for the first time will be able to make his case go away
simply and quietly regardless of the circumstances.
This is not the case, however.
In Nassau County, the value of
the property that is alleged to have been
taken is a major factor in being able to predict the likely attitude of
the Court and the District Attorney's Office. The greater the
value of the property, the greater the likelihood that the District
Attorney's Office and the Court will be seeking stiff fines and possibly
even jail time.
In many cases, those who wish to become involved in negotiations over
shoplifting cases are required to complete an anti-shoplifting class up
front and bring proof of completion with them to court.
Furthermore, merchants in Nassau County frequently make efforts to
take advantage of an obscure statute that permits them to sue those
accused of shoplifting civilly and recover money damages.
If you or someone you care about has been accused of shoplifting in
Nassau County, you need to be aware that it is going to be taken
extremely seriously. You need a criminal defense lawyer to help
navigate you through the process, even (especially) if it is a first arrest
in order to obtain the best possible result.
