Shoplifting Lawyer Novi

Searching for the Best Lawyer for your Novi Michigan Shoplifting Charge at the 52-1 District Court?

If you appear for a court date for a Novi Michigan misdemeanor or felony shoplifting allegation, you need an experienced and exceptional criminal defense attorney who will fight on your behalf. No matter if your accusation is from Twelve Oaks Mall, a national retail franchise, or a locally based Novi business we can help defend you. Get Hilf & Hilf, PLC on your side for immediate and positive steps taken toward achieving great results. Shoplifting criminal defense specialist Daniel Hilf appears before the Judges at the 52-1 District Court (in Novi, for misdemeanor and felony cases), the 6th Circuit Court (for felony cases bound over from 52-1 District Court), aggressively defending all shoplifting charges.

Having to go before a 52-1 District Court Judge or 6th Circuit Court Judge may seem overwhelming, but it is important to remember that facing a shoplifting allegation does not make you a bad person. In fact, retail fraud is prosecuted by the Novi City Attorney and the Oakland County Prosecutor’s Office on a basis, but it is often predicated on one single allegation of attempted retail theft due to a temporary lapse in judgment. However, just because shoplifting accusations are heard daily and frequently at the 52-1 District Court and elsewhere in Oakland County it does not mean that there are not serious long term repercussions or that it will not affect your life in a negative way. Any shoplifting conviction can have a life lasting impact, because a sentence from this conviction may include any or all of the following outcomes: the loss of your freedom (incarceration and loss of ability to do the things you want to do); probation with supervisory conditions; loss of employment; professional licensing issues (for lawyers, accountants, nurses, stock brokers, and other positions that require State or Federal licensing); loss of educational opportunities; steep fines and costs; immigration complications (for persons that are not United States citizens); and personal embarrassment. Beyond a shadow of a doubt – you need experienced and zealous attorney who is one hundred percent on your side working on your behalf for your Novi shoplifting case.

A shoplifting charge is based upon one of a variety of theft related behaviors, such as: when store merchandise is stolen or an attempt to steal store merchandise is made; when the price tag of the merchandise is intentionally changed to a lower price to defraud the store; or when merchandise is fraudulently exchanged in order to obtain money or other store merchandise. Criminal shoplifting allegations that are commonly prosecuted at the 52-1 District Court in Novi and other Michigan courtrooms include the following:

First Degree Retail Fraud is a felony charge that carries up to a 5 year maximum prison sentence that is prosecuted when the merchandise involved is $1,000 (one thousand dollars) or more, or if the merchandise involved is $200 (two hundred dollars) or more and the person has a prior theft conviction [your Judge, however, can choose to impose a term of probation instead of taking you into custody].

Organized Retail Theft is felony charge that carries up to a 5 year maximum prison sentence that is also subject to applicable habitual offender sentencing provisions [your Judge, however, can choose to impose a term of probation instead of taking you into custody]. The allegation of Organized Retail Theft is prosecuted when the prosecution believes it has probable cause that the intent of the Defendant is to commit retail fraud from one or more stores and then resell the stolen merchandise to others – essentially creating a business out of shoplifting.

Second Degree Retail Fraud is a misdemeanor charge that carries up to a 1 year maximum county jail sentence that is prosecuted when the merchandise involved is at least $200 (two hundred dollars) but less than $1000 (one thousand dollars), or if the merchandise involved is under $200 (two hundred dollars) and the person has a prior theft conviction [your Judge, however, can choose to impose a term of probation instead of taking you into custody].

Third Degree Retail Fraud is a misdemeanor charge that carries up to a 93 day maximum county jail sentence that is prosecuted under either State law or local ordinance, when the merchandise involved in the offense is less than $200 (two hundred dollars) [your Judge, however, can choose to impose a term of probation instead of taking you into custody].

Removal of a Theft Detection Device is a misdemeanor charges that carries up to a 1 year maximum county jail sentence that is prosecuted under State law [your Judge, however, can choose to impose a term of probation instead of taking you into custody].

Do Your Need an Experienced Attorney to Defend a Shoplifting Charge at the 52-1 District Court in Novi?

Many businesses in Novi and across Michigan have developed comprehensive policies and strategies with the goal of reducing shoplifting losses, avoiding contested litigation, and deterring overall store theft. It is now common for a coordinated team of loss prevention professionals using high-tech equipment (such as merchandise sensors and closed circuit television) to be employed by a store for the purpose of combating the liabilities and costs associated with shoplifting. Even with the best technology and up to date training, mistakes are still made and persons are still sometimes falsely arrested due to errors in judgment (such as false identification and false interpretation of a situation), cultural issues, and procedural errors.

If you choose to hire Daniel Hilf to be your attorney for your Novi shoplifting arrest he will obtain all the available discovery materials to fully and properly defend you, which can include the following: police report(s), loss prevention report(s), witness statement(s), in store video(s), police video(s), photograph(s), statement(s) the police and/or loss prevention claims that you made. He will provide you with well thought out advice concerning how to proceed based upon your facts, circumstances, and background. It is your choice if you want to try and obtain a plea bargain (an agreement with the prosecution to dismiss or reduce the charge(s) against you) or try to obtain a favorable sentence agreement (an agreement with the Judge and/or prosecutor to impose a specific sentence, such as avoiding or limiting any term of confinement) or proceed to trial to try and obtain an acquittal.

You should not delay with your decision to hire the best shoplifting defense representation to help you, because a shoplifting conviction will likely cause a whole host of problems in addition to criminal penalties, including making it extremely difficult to find a well paying job or career, because many companies do not want to risk hiring someone convicted of theft. Hire attorney Daniel Hilf, who is a highly rated retail criminal defense attorney to help you with your Novi allegation. Attorney Daniel Hilf is widely respected throughout the Oakland County court system, based upon his legal acumen and his over twenty years of experience inside and outside of Michigan courtrooms helping individuals like yourself fight for favorable results.

If you have to appear for a Court date due to an alleged Novi shoplifting incident, now is the right time to make an impactful and wise decision concerning your in court legal representation. Contact Hilf & Hilf, PLC to schedule an appointment to obtain the shoplifting defense legal representation that you need in Novi.