Austin TX Theft Attorneys

Criminal defense attorneys provide you with several years of practical experience defending clients from theft-related charges throughout and the surrounding areas.

A lot of people charged with theft crimes in are very good, productive citizens who made an unfortunate error…and should have another chance instead of a permanent criminal record and jail time.

Moreover, at times innocent people get falsely accused of theft crimes using wrong allegations or even deceiving evidence.

Our theft crimes attorneys have been successful in getting charges decreased or dismissed in such cases as Petty Theft, Grand Theft, Identity Theft, Receiving Stolen Property, Burglary, Grand Theft Auto, Grand Theft Firearm, Auto Burglary and Embezzlement.

A theft related conviction can be especially destructive in terms of getting potential employment, state licensing and other benefits.

Although many theft convictions could eventually be expunged, they’ll still show up on background checks.

Business employers tend to shy away from candidates with theft records, dreading these people to be shady and having the potential to steal from their businesses.

Moreover, many theft crimes are viewed as “crimes of moral turpitude.”

Which means that state license boards usually refer to theft convictions as the valid reason to refuse licenses and certifications, including a contractor’s license, a nursing license or even a real estate license.

These convictions could also cause immigration consequences for immigrants wanting a visa, green card or naturalization to the United States.

Fighting a Theft Charge

It’s good to know that a seasoned theft crimes lawyer can often provide help to remove the charge and keep the issue away from your record.

Our first approach to every theft crimes case is always to scrutinize the details to find out if the prosecutor actually has sufficient evidence to establish you guilty beyond reasonable doubt.

If not, we could really challenge the evidence in court and often get the case dropped or even get a “not guilty” verdict at trial.

Sometimes the prosecution’s evidence may be tremendous.

Even then, our criminal defense lawyers could discuss an arrangement with the judge or prosecutor to get the theft charges decreased or terminated.

This is also true in first offense theft cases, in which the client is without any record and simply made a terrible error.

In case you come to an agreement to repay the victim and to do a program of community service or theft counseling, often we could convince the D.A. or the legal court to lower the charges and spare the client the stigma of a permanent criminal record.

Common Theft Crimes

• Petty Theft: Under the Penal Code, it is the stealing of property priced up to $950. Even though the offense is a misdemeanor, a second offense could be charged as a felony (Petty Theft with a Prior).
• Grand Theft: Under Penal Code, this is the stealing of property valued at more than $950. It may be charged as a misdemeanor or a felony.
• Grand Theft of a Firearm: Any theft of a firearm counts as “grand theft”, no matter what of the price of the weapon. This specific offense is usually a felony.
• Grand Theft Auto: A number of State laws treats any theft of an car as “grand theft”, regardless the price of the vehicle.
• Burglary: Entering a structure with the purpose to commit a felony or any theft inside constitutes burglary in most states. If the structure is a home or even “inhabited dwelling,” residential burglary could be charged.
• Auto Burglary: Breaking into a locked vehicle for the purpose of stealing it constitutes “auto burglary”.
• Embezzlement: A person who wrongfully steals or even misappropriates property entrusted to him by the rightful owner could be charged with embezzlement.
• Receiving Stolen Property: This happens when someone purchases or gets property that he/she knows (or reasonably should know) is stolen.
• Robbery: Any person commits Robbery if he uses violence, force as well as threats to take property from another person’s immediate possession.
• Carjacking: It is basically robbery of a vehicle. If a person uses force or even fear to take a vehicle from someone else’s immediate possession, carjacking may be charged.

Grand Theft – Petty Theft – Robbery – Burglary – Larceny – Stolen Property – False Pretense – Shoplifting

Theft is Stealing

Theft crimes, otherwise known as Larceny, are crimes in which a particular person knowingly and willfully takes somebody else property.

Theft crimes can include all forms of stealing and penalties vary from fines to jail sentences.

Penalties for Theft

If you’ve been busted stealing or convicted of a Theft crime, you could be facing several Theft Penalties, like:

• Jail
• Probation or Parole
• Restitution (paying back victims for their loss)
• Court-Ordered Counseling
• Fines

The Courts examine every Theft case independently.

The highest penalties are given to those criminals who have a record of theft charges and the use of weapons.

Stealing – What is truly at stake here.

Right after you have been caught stealing or charged with a Theft crime, convicted, and settled fines and/or served jail time, your possible might suffer as a result.

The charge of Theft might make you to rethink your job choices (especially those related to the financial industry); limit professional certificates and licenses, and comes with a lifetime of social judgment.

Trust can’t be paid for. Inside all circles, integrity is tremendously valued. A criminal history of Theft charges is tough to get rid of.

The significance of getting a skilled criminal defense attorney to handle your Theft charges cannot be undervalued.

Our prepared and seasoned lawyers will be meticulous in every point in the case and will include all.

PhoneLaw Offices as soon as possible to guarantee a very good and sound defense.

Criminal defense law office services could include some or all of the these:

• Very early preparation and investigation of all case-related facts;
• Early identification and interviews of witnesses;
• Victim interviews with recorded statements;
• Early call with Prosecutor, before formal case filing;
• Elimination of bail requirements;
• Preparation of motions for Own Recognizance (Or) status;
• Scheduling of privately-held lie detector test;
• Securing gainful employment for accused;
• Preparation of important documents, such as reference, support, and character letters;
• Making all formal motions for case dismissal;
• Investigation of counseling as a viable choice to imprisonment, based on medical or psychological examination;
• Exploration of alternatives to prison, like house arrest or electronic monitoring;
• Presentation of a highly effective defense!

If you are charged with a Theft crime – get the best assistance in your case.

Explanation of Theft Crimes

Lots of crime types are committed each day. Many are minor and lots of persons commit them.

Minor crime examples are traffic violations, such as speeding or illegal u-turns.

Some crimes are really serious and do not take place as much, fortunately. An example of a really serious crime is robbery.

Robbery is taking property from another by force as well as threats. It’s a theft type in the sense that property is illegally taken.

However, robbery is much more serious than normal theft simply because force or even threats are used. This is particularly true if the robber uses a weapon to take property.

Robbery Elements

Crimes are made up of elements that needs to be fulfilled to convict a person. Robbery has 4 main elements.

A person is guilty of robbery if he:

• Takes property from its rightful owner
• Acts without the owner’s permission
• Intends to steal property
• Uses force or intimidation against the owner

A person must have specific intent to commit robbery. If he is just borrowing property or even playing a joke, it is not robbery.

The force or intimidation must be directly associated to the taking of property for the act to become robbery.

It cannot be after the property is taken. The force or intimidation has to be immediate.

There’s no robbery if the threat is for future violence.

Aggravated Robbery

From time to time robbery occurs under circumstances which makes it much more serious than simple robbery.

This is whats called aggravated robbery. Many different factors can turn simple robbery into aggravated robbery.

Common aggravating factors include:

• Using a deadly weapon
• Inflicting serious bodily harm

A deadly weapon is one that can be used to kill or even seriously injure or hurt.

Using a deadly weapon to force or threaten someone to steal his property is an aggravating factor raising crime severity.

Common dangerous weapons include guns and knives.

If someone inflicts considerable bodily harm on a victim, he may be also arrested for aggravated robbery, even without using a deadly weapon.

Laws and regulations demand a much more serious punishment whenever a victim is severely hurt, and not simply threatened.

Some states don’t require serious injury in some cases.

To illustrate, a person is accountable in Texas of aggravated robbery if he causes bodily harm to anyone 65 years or even older or even who’s disabled.

Punishment for Robbery

Robbery is considered a felony. Many states and the federal government classify a crime that’s punishable by more than one year in jail as a felony.

Some states consider a felony as any kind of crime that’s punishable by any prison time.

In contrast, an inexpensive theft is typically regarded as a misdemeanor.

Most states and the federal government classify a crime that’s punishable by less than one year in prison as a misdemeanor.

A number of states consider a misdemeanor as any kind of crime that’s punishable only by fine or even brief prison sentence.

Whether a crime is a robbery or a theft will have a huge impact on punishment.

Common punishment for robbery conviction is a prison sentence.

Sentence length depends on a person’s criminal records and case conditions.

A large fine may also be imposed along with any prison sentence. States will often have greater punishments for aggravated robbery.