Video Discription |
San Diego Theft Lawyer, Ryan Tegnelia, discusses the importance of hiring a knowledgeable attorney if charged with a theft crime, and explains that certain factors of the case determine whether the charge will be considered a misdemeanor or a felony. If you are facing theft charges and live in the San Diego area, feel free to contact our office for a free consultation, or visit our website for more information.
RJT Criminal Lawyer
2820 Camino del Rio South
Suite 110
San Diego, California 92108
619-577-0868
https://www.sandiegocriminallawyerrt.com/areas-of-practice/theft/
Hi, my name is Ryan Tegnelia. I'm a criminal defense attorney here in San Diego, California. Thank you for clicking on the link. And I can tell by the fact that you clicked this particular link, that you're interested in theft crimes. It really can't be overstated how varied theft crimes are. The biggest demarcation between thefts is the value of the property or the services that were stolen. Generally speaking, if the value of the property was under $950, the person will be charged with a misdemeanor. If it's over $950, then they'll be charged with a felony.
Other than that, other variables on theft cases are what was stolen and who it was stolen from. So, some items, regardless of their value, if you steal them, it's going to be a felony, such as a car. If you steal from someone whose over a certain age. Instead of being charged a theft, you may be charged with elder abuse.
So, needless to say, the variety of theft cases is pretty, pretty large, and it encompasses a pretty big area of criminal law. What you're hoping to get with an attorney, depending on the facts of your case, are if it's a rather minor offense, then we can get you something that's called The Community Justice Initiative, which, long story short, sort of dismisses the case. Sweeps it off your record. It is something the prosecutor has to agree to, so we sometimes have to put together a package. It's called a mitigation packet, and convince the prosecutor to give it to you.
On felony cases, there's a lot of negotiation in theft cases. The value is often one thing because if that is confirmed that there was a theft, returning whatever was stolen or the value of what was stolen to the victim, is a primary mover in felony theft cases.
And then sometimes people are accused of stealing things that they legitimately believed were theirs. Not mistakenly picking up a briefcase that looks like yours, but more like a business partner that took money that they felt they were entitled to, something like that. Or, the government saying you needed to pay a certain insurance premium that you don't think you needed to pay.
All of those things are encompassed with theft crimes, so it's important to sit down with your attorney and go over what they could do for you and what possible defenses you have.
If you want to talk with me about it, you can either post a comment in the comment section. Or, you can give us a call at 619-577-0868.
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