St. Paul Theft Attorney
Theft is one of the most common crimes in America. A US home is burglarized every 13 seconds. This means law enforcement is experienced in theft investigations. But being charged with receiving stolen property can occur when the accused is not even aware of it. You can come into possession of stolen property without actually taking the item yourself, but this won’t necessarily stop law enforcement from charging you with a crime. Perhaps a thief gives an expensive bracelet to a friend. Another thief might sell that sparkly bracelet to a stranger. Or, in an effort to allow time for the intensity of an investigation to die down, a criminal might ask a friend to hold onto stolen goods, hiding them until it is safer to sell them. All of those scenarios involve the crime of receiving stolen property. What happens to those who get charged with a crime?
Minnesota Law: There is a legal umbrella in Minnesota called Common Theft. Under this umbrella reside several criminal situations involving stolen property:
- Knowingly conceal, retain, take, transfer or use another person’s property without their permission, intent on depriving them of that property permanently.
- Take custody, possession or title to a service or property by deceit or false representation as another person.
- File a medical claim under false pretenses.
- Find lost property without making a reasonable effort to return property to the rightful owner.
- Lease or rent property without payment or returning property.
- Deprive provider of cable television, or other telecommunications services, of their rightful charges.
- Drive or take possession of a motor vehicle without permission from the owner.
What The Law Means: If you take something that doesn’t belong to you, with the intent to permanently drive them thereof, that’s a crime. If you find something that doesn’t belong to you and keep it, that could be a crime. If you accept property from someone that you know is stolen, you’ve committed a crime. If you trick someone into giving you something that belongs to someone else, that, too, is a crime.
What Can Happen: The value of property, and certain circumstances by which the theft occurred, are factored into the penalty for a stolen property crime.
- Value Less Than $500: This is the lowest level theft offense, a petty theft misdemeanor. A person can be fined up to $1,000 and sentenced up to 90 days in jail.
- Value $500-$1,000: Up the ante and fine limitation increases to $3,000 and sentence can be up to one year in jail.
- Value $1,000-$5,000: Those charged face a fine up to $10,000 and possibly 5 years in jail. There are variables with this level charge. Possession of a controlled substance, prior similar conviction, occur during a riot or disaster, involve a motor vehicle, or take property from the dead can increase the severity of the penalty.
- Value $5,000+: Persons charged face a fine up to $20,000 and up to 10 years in jail. This type of theft can be more than property. It might also be theft of a trade secret, explosive or incendiary device, or controlled substance other than marijuana.
- Value $35,000+: This is the top level theft offense in Minnesota. Those charged face a fine up to $100,000 and possibly 20 years in jail. If the offense includes theft of any firearm or contributing acts like deception or fraud of a vulnerable adult, the penalties could be greater.
More Than Money & Time: A stolen property crime affects those charged with much more than the money a fine will cost them and time lost sitting in jail. Those charged must also compensate victims for the value of the property stolen. Punitive money damages may also be awarded to victims. In addition, a person will have a criminal record that will follow them for the rest of their lives. A theft conviction can make it difficult to get a job. Some jobs will be off limits altogether. It can also make it more difficult to qualify for housing. Even a petty theft conviction will make life more difficult.
What To Do: To protect your future and the opportunities that will present themselves, it is important to have expert legal representation that will aggressively protect your best interests. If you face Receiving Stolen Property charges in counties surrounding St. Paul, such as Anoka, Carver, Dakota, Hennepin, Ramsey, Scott or Washington, please contact us. As an experienced criminal defense lawyer, John Lesch has decades of criminal law experience. We are committed to defending your rights and aggressively pursuing the best outcome for each client, minimizing the negative impact a criminal charge can have on their lives.