Theft crimes cover a wide range of offenses in New Jersey and are prosecuted harshly, particularly in Hunterdon and Somerset County. These charges can carry serious ramifications including state prison time. It is important to hire theft crime defense attorney Jenna Casper Bloom who has handled a variety of these charges.
What are the different types of Theft Crimes in Flemington, New Jersey?
- Robbery
- Theft by Unlawful Taking
- Burglary
- Theft by Receiving Stolen Property
- Shoplifting
- Theft by Deception
- Theft by Extortion
Depending on the crime you are charged with, your case will be handled in either municipal court or Superior Court. Both of these carry a variety of penalties if you are convicted of the crime you are charged with.
What are the penalties for theft crimes in Flemington, New Jersey?
First Degree Offense
- Up to 20 years state prison
- Fine of $200,000.00
Second Degree Offenses
- Up to 10 years state prison
- Fine up to $150,000.00
Third Degree Offenses
- Up to 5 years state prison
- Fine up to $15,000.00
Fourth Degree Offenses
- Up to 18 months state prison
- Fine of $10,0000
Disorderly Person Offenses
- Up to 6 months incarceration
- Fine of up to $1,000
Petty Disorderly Person Offenses
- Up to 30 days incarceration
- Fine of up to $500
If you are found guilty of a Robbery Charge or a second degree burglary charge, you will be sentenced to state prison under the No Early Release Act under N.J.S.A. 2C:43-7.2. Under NERA (No Early Release Act) in New Jersey, you will be required to serve eighty-five percent of your state prison sentence before you are eligible for parole. Normally, if you were sentenced to five years state prison, you would have to serve one year before you are eligible for parole. Under NERA, if you were sentenced to a five year state prison sentence, you would have to serve over four years before you would be eligible for parole. As you can see, it is very important to get your case out of the NERA sentencing guidelines. Jenna Casper Bloom has handled many theft cases and has successfully gotten them dismissed or reduced to a lesser charge.
What constitutes a Robbery in Flemington, New Jersey?
- A person is guilty of robbery if, in the course of committing a theft, he:
- Inflicts bodily injury or uses force upon another; or
- Threatens another with or purposely puts him in fear of immediate bodily injury; or
- Commits or threatens immediately to commit any crime of the first or second degree.
Robbery is a crime of the second degree, except that it is a crime of the first degree if in the course of committing the theft the actor attempts to kill anyone, or purposely inflicts or attempts to inflict serious bodily injury, or is armed with, or uses or threatens the immediate use of a deadly weapon.
What constitutes a Burglary in Flemington, New Jersey?
A person is guilty of burglary if, with purpose to commit an offense therein or thereon he:
- Enters a research facility, structure, or a separately secured or occupied portion thereof unless the structure was at the time open to the public or the actor is licensed or privileged to enter;
- Surreptitiously remains in a research facility, structure, or a separately secured or occupied portion thereof knowing that he is not licensed or privileged to do so; or
- Trespasses in or upon utility company property where public notice prohibiting trespass is given by conspicuous posting, or fencing or other enclosure manifestly designed to exclude intruders.
Grading. Burglary is a crime of the second degree if in the course of committing the offense, the actor:
- Purposely, knowingly or recklessly inflicts, attempts to inflict or threatens to inflict bodily injury on anyone; or
- Is armed with or displays what appear to be explosives or a deadly weapon.
What constitutes Theft by Unlawful Taking in Flemington, New Jersey?
- Movable property. A person is guilty of theft if he unlawfully takes, or exercises unlawful control over, movable property of another with purpose to deprive him thereof.
- Immovable property. A person is guilty of theft if he unlawfully transfers any interest in immovable property of another with purpose to benefit himself or another not entitled thereto.
- Theft by Unlawful Taking is a third or fourth degree offense in New Jersey.
What constitutes Theft by Deception in Flemington, New Jersey?
A person is guilty of theft if he purposely obtains property of another by deception. A person deceives if he purposely:
- Creates or reinforces a false impression, including false impressions as to law, value, intention or other state of mind, and including, but not limited to, a false impression that the person is soliciting or collecting funds for a charitable purpose; but deception as to a person’s intention to perform a promise shall not be inferred from the fact alone that he did not subsequently perform the promise;
- Prevents another from acquiring information which would affect his judgment of a transaction; or
- Fails to correct a false impression which the deceiver previously created or reinforced, or which the deceiver knows to be influencing another to whom he stands in a fiduciary or confidential relationship.
Theft by Deception is a third degree offense.
What constitutes Theft by Extortion in Flemington, New Jersey?
A person is guilty of theft by extortion if he purposely and unlawfully obtains property of another by extortion. A person extorts if he purposely threatens to:
- Inflict bodily injury on or physically confine or restrain anyone or commit any other criminal offense;
- Accuse anyone of an offense or cause charges of an offense to be instituted against any person;
- Expose or publicize any secret or any asserted fact, whether true or false, tending to subject any person to hatred, contempt or ridicule, or to impair his credit or business repute;
- Take or withhold action as an official, or cause an official to take or withhold action;
- Bring about or continue a strike, boycott or other collective action, if the property is not demanded or received for the benefit of the group in whose interest the actor purports to act;
- Testify or provide information or withhold testimony or information with respect to another’s legal claim or defense; or
- Inflict any other harm which would not substantially benefit the actor but which is calculated to materially harm another person.
Theft by Extortion is a second or third degree offense in New Jersey.
What constitutes Theft by Receiving Stole Property in Flemington, New Jersey?
- A person is guilty of theft if he knowingly receives or brings into this State movable property of another knowing that it has been stolen, or believing that it is probably stolen. It is an affirmative defense that the property was received with purpose to restore it to the owner. “Receiving” means acquiring possession, control or title, or lending on the security of the property.
- Presumption of knowledge. The requisite knowledge or belief is presumed in the case of a person who:
- Is found in possession or control of two or more items of property stolen on two or more separate occasions; or
- Has received stolen property in another transaction within the year preceding the transaction charged; or
- Being a person in the business of buying or selling property of the sort received, acquires the property without having ascertained by reasonable inquiry that the person from whom he obtained it had a legal right to possess and dispose of it; or
- Is found in possession of two or more defaced access devices; or
- Is found in possession of property of a cargo carrier without proper documentation or other evidence of right to possession.
- Theft by Receiving Stolen Property is a second, third, or fourth degree offense in New Jersey.
What constitutes shoplifting Flemington, New Jersey?
- For any person purposely to take possession of, carry away, transfer or cause to be carried away or transferred, any merchandise displayed, held, stored or offered for sale by any store or other retail mercantile establishment with the intention of depriving the merchant of the possession, use or benefit of such merchandise or converting the same to the use of such person without paying to the merchant the full retail value thereof.
- For any person purposely to conceal upon his person or otherwise any merchandise offered for sale by any store or other retail mercantile establishment with the intention of depriving the merchant of the processes, use or benefit of such merchandise or converting the same to the use of such person without paying to the merchant the value thereof.
- For any person purposely to alter, transfer or remove any label, price tag or marking indicia of value or any other markings which aid in determining value affixed to any merchandise displayed, held, stored or offered for sale by any store or other retail mercantile establishment and to attempt to purchase such merchandise personally or in consort with another at less than the full retail value with the intention of depriving the merchant of all or some part of the value thereof.
- For any person purposely to transfer any merchandise displayed, held, stored or offered for sale by any store or other retail merchandise establishment from the container in or on which the same shall be displayed to any other container with intent to deprive the merchant of all or some part of the retail value thereof.
- For any person purposely to under-ring with the intention of depriving the merchant of the full retail value thereof.
- For any person purposely to remove a shopping cart from the premises of a store or other retail mercantile establishment without the consent of the merchant given at the time of such removal with the intention of permanently depriving the merchant of the possession, use or benefit of such cart.
- Shoplifting is a second, third, or fourth degree offense in New Jersey.
Hire a Flemington Theft Crimes Defense Attorney
Jenna Casper Bloom has over fourteen years experience handling all criminal matters including thefts, drug offenses, weapons offenses, sexual assault, aggravated assault, domestic violence, Megan’s Law offenses, Graves Act, DWI/DUI, traffic tickets, Pre-trial intervention, gun cases, marijuana charges, and expungements. She has handled cases from all stages and hearings including motions to suppress, Miranda hearings and has extensive trial experience. She provides an aggressive defense for any crime that one is charged with which results in her clients receiving favorable outcomes. Additionally, many times Jenna Casper Bloom gets cases dismissed for her client or plead guilty to a lesser offense. She has also argued probation and parole violation hearings which resulted in her clients being able to stay on probation or parole and not return to prison. She especially has experience with detention hearings, allowing her clients to be released pending their trial instead of languishing in jail.
If you can be charged with the crime, Jenna Casper Bloom has experience in defending it. She practices in Mercer County, Hunterdon County, Warren County, and Somerset County as well as in the towns of Trenton, Flemington, Clinton, Raritan, Annandale, Union, Pennington, East Amwell, West Amwell, Lawrenceville, Ewing, and Princeton.
Jenna Casper Bloom will treat you as the person you are, not the crime you have been charged with. Contact her today for a free consultation.
