Theft and Shoplifting Lawyer in Chandler, AZ

Value does most of the sorting in a Chandler theft case. A.R.S. 13-1802 treats theft of property or services worth less than $1,000 as a class 1 misdemeanor, with two exceptions that matter here: property taken from another's person, and a firearm, are felonies whatever the value. From $1,000 up, every tier is a felony. Shoplifting under A.R.S. 13-1805 draws its misdemeanor line at the same figure.

A misdemeanor written up by Chandler Police stays in the city. The City Prosecutor's Office (250 E. Chicago St.) brings it, and Chandler Municipal Court (200 E. Chicago St.) hears it. The court places itself two blocks east of Arizona Avenue and three blocks south of Chandler Boulevard, next door to the police department. The city's downtown parking page lists free public garages, among them the City Hall Parking Garage, at Washington and Chicago streets.

Shoplifting is the example this court chose for itself. Its Criminal Charges page says that for some offenses, and shoplifting is the one it names, the City Prosecutor's Office offers programs that can stand in for the normal trial process. The same page adds that the City Prosecutor, not the Court, determines who is eligible.

Three allegations move a retail case out of the city. One is value at or above $1,000. Another is a claim that a device or article was used to facilitate the shoplifting, or that there are at least two earlier theft-type offenses within the past five years; either makes it a class 4 felony. The third is organized retail theft, which A.R.S. 13-1819 classes as a class 4 felony and which one person acting alone can commit. Chandler Police list organized retail theft and vehicle theft among the work of their Property Crimes Unit, and the department also names a Financial Crimes Unit.

Felony theft is usually charged by the Maricopa County Attorney's Office. The Arizona Attorney General's Office takes certain retail theft matters, typically after a state agency's investigation or where more than one county is involved. The courtrooms are in Superior Court's downtown criminal complex, at 175 W. Madison St. (South Court Tower) or 201 W. Jefferson St. (Central Court Building). Confirm the building on your current notice. We handle these matters whichever office brought the charge.

Not every misdemeanor from inside the city limits is a city case. If the report came from DPS or a sheriff's deputy, the case may be assigned to a county justice court, and the county has four of them in one building at 201 E. Chicago Street. The citation names the court, and that is the one to follow.

A case can begin in two ways. Often an officer issues a citation at the store, with an appearance date printed on it. In other cases, especially workplace and online accusations, a report goes to the prosecutor first and a charge may come by summons later. A quiet few weeks does not mean the report was dropped.

Do not assume the court will appoint you a lawyer. Arizona Rule of Criminal Procedure 6.1(b) entitles an indigent defendant to appointed counsel in a proceeding that may result in punishment by loss of liberty. In misdemeanor court, the prosecutor can avow that no jail will be requested and the judge can rule that no jail will be imposed, and once that happens, there is no right to appointed counsel at all. Arizona's Court of Appeals upheld exactly that in Campa v. Fleming, 134 Ariz. 330 (App. 1982), on a class 1 misdemeanor carrying up to six months in jail, for a defendant who was on probation and facing immigration consequences.

Avoiding jail is not the same as avoiding a conviction. Employers, licensing boards and landlords tend to read a theft conviction as a statement about honesty, and it can raise federal immigration problems for a person who is not a citizen. It can also count later as one of the two earlier offenses that turn a new shoplifting charge into a class 4 felony.