Target Shoplifting in Louisiana: Laws and Penalties

If you or anyone you love gets accused of stealing from Target don’t waste time contemplating, contact the Barkemeyer Law Firm for your defense. Essentially, not all shoplifting cases deserve a harsh penalty. But, in the absence of a well-versed attorney, your chances of securing optimal outcomes will reduce greatly. Besides, the consequences of first-offense shoplifting are not limited to a jail term and exorbitant cash fines. Depending on how incriminatory the pieces of evidence gathered against you are, you may leave a stain on your record that even the sands of time cannot wash away. Hence, the need to educate yourself on Louisiana shoplifting laws and secure an aggressive criminal defense attorney for your case.

Target Loss Prevention

Over the years, the retail industry has lost billions of dollars to shoplifters who cart away with unpurchased items. This has caused many retail shops and franchises to create a special unit in their security department to help monitor the activities of customers in the aisles. Target, like other top retail businesses in the United States, has dedicated security specialists for this task. These professionals are referred to as Loss prevention officers, and they perform a range of functions from monitoring the areas in the business where profit is dwindling to gathering incriminatory pieces of evidence against suspected shoplifters.

Even though these individuals are employed by Target, they may not wear matching uniforms like the rest of Target’s security team. Thus, it may difficult to identify them when shoplifting in one of Target’s gigantic locations.

·      What happens when you are caught by a Target Loss Prevention officer

If ever you are apprehended by a Target Loss Prevention officer, you’ll be handed to the police for further questioning. From that point onwards, you’ll be treated like an accused and whatever you say or do would be used against you in court. It is important to keep your cool in this type of scenario and leave your shoplifting defenses to the hands of an aggressive criminal defense attorney. Besides Target loss prevention team is connected to one of the top-rated Forensic laboratories in the country, and as such, there is a high probability that they have other incriminatory evidence against you that you may not know of at the time of your arrest.

Target Loss Prevention team has been known to provide forensic evidence against defendants caught shoplifting in their store, including video clips, pictures, fingerprints, and other tangible pieces of evidence that can be used against an accused in court. Without the help of an aggressive attorney, you may experience difficulty in defending yourself against these overwhelming pieces of incriminatory evidence. That’s why it is important to call the Carl Barkemeyer, Criminal Defense Attorney firm when you or someone you love in Louisiana is apprehended by Target’s Loss Prevention team.

·      Target Loss Prevention Program

Target Loss Prevention Program is a strict and intense program that takes shoplifting very seriously. On average, the retail industry loses over 30 billion dollars to organized retail crime and shoplifters every year. The loss prevention program is the company’s solution to these incessant thefts. They hope to reduce theft across their locations by apprehending shoplifters and handing them over to the police. Suffice to say, that they have sent a lot of shoplifters to jail through their loss prevention program. Without the help of an aggressive lawyer, an optimal outcome may be farfetched in your shoplifting case.

Mr. Carl Barkemeyer is a shoplifting lawyer in Louisiana with extensive experience in theft and shoplifting cases. He can provide the insight needed to help you secure an optimal outcome in your court case when you are accused of stealing from Target in Louisiana and its surrounding areas. Louisiana shoplifting is not something you want on your record as it can make it difficult for you to land a job in a reputable company or secure mortgage from banks.

Understanding the difference between shoplifting and theft

Shoplifting charges in Louisiana are generally regarded as theft, and as such the value of items stolen will have a tremendous impact on the potential outcomes of your case. You shouldn’t walk into a Louisiana courtroom without securing the support of an aggressive lawyer. Things can turn sour pretty quickly when dealing with a theft charge in Louisiana, especially when you don’t have an experienced lawyer to guide you. While you may not know this, the potential consequences of first-offense shoplifting conviction or any other conviction, at that, can be supplicated by an experienced attorney.

In the event of a shoplifting conviction, Mr. Carl Barkemeyer will work proactively to secure a more favorable outcome for your case.

On the other hand, if the pieces of incriminatory evidence filed against you at the point of arrest are obtained illegally, Mr. carl Barkemeyer will contend against such evidence in court.

Despite Target’s proficiency in gathering evidence against shoplifters, they have their shortfalls. As such, they are not completely protected from mistakes and wrongful accusations. If there’s a slight chance that the evidence gathered against you were wrongfully obtained, Mr. Carl Barkemeyer will fight aggressively to render those incriminatory pieces of evidence inadmissible in court.

Easiest store to steal from

All thanks to Target’s loss prevention team, the company has evolved from being one of the easiest stores to steal from to becoming one of the most challenging retailers to steal from. If you think you can get away with shoplifting in any of the numerous Target locations across the country, you may have another think coming.

In the past, people perceived Target as one of the easiest stores to steal from, because you could step out of the entryway of a Target store with a basket full of unpurchased items and nobody will pay you any mind. But that time is long gone. Target is no longer the gullible company that shoplifters think it to be. Now, more than ever, Target is investing in security gadgets and personnel to help monitor customers’ activities across its numerous stores. In this way, it will be near impossible to steal from Target without being caught on camera or by some loss prevention personnel.

Although it isn’t uncommon for the consequences of first-offense shoplifting in target to end up in a warning. Not everyone enjoys such luxury. Depending on the value of the item stolen from the store, and the incriminatory evidence filed against you, you can incur a jail term of up to 20 years in prison. Of course, high-value thefts will accompany harsher penalties. For instance, you might incur an exorbitant cash fine of up to $50,000 in Louisiana and its surrounding areas if you are caught shoplifting items of $25,000 or more. Not to mention the detrimental impact a shoplifting conviction will have on your record. But then again, time behind bars and a tainted record are not the worst-case scenarios of a Shoplifting conviction. The bigger question is; how do you get a job with a shoplifting charge on your record?

Regardless of what you might be thinking, Target is not the easiest store to steal from. While you may not know this, this gigantic retailer has one of the most sophisticated forensic labs in Las Vegas. Target’s top-rated forensic services laboratory provides back up for governmental agencies and law bureaus when they fall short of manpower. All thanks to their expertise in analyzing video and image evidence gathered against an accused, law enforcement officers have solved diverse crimes across the US.

Can I get away with shoplifting at target?

As the retail industry continues to advance in science and technology it has become progressively difficult to steal from Target. The question has changed from whether or not Target is an easy store to steal from, to: can shoplifting charges be dropped by Target?

Potentially, yes. Depending on your attorney’s aggressiveness in defending your wrongfully accused shoplifting rights, the court may, in its magnanimity, drop the case labeled against you. Needless to say, that your lawyer would have to be well-experienced in Louisiana laws especially its reservations for theft-related cases. Without an aggressive attorney supporting you in court, not only do you stand the risk of a conviction, but you also stand the risk of getting the worst possible conviction under the circumstances. That’s why we recommend that you don’t waste time in calling a shoplifting lawyer to help you defend your innocence in court.

Mr. Carl Barkemeyer and his team of experienced attorneys are here in Louisiana for your sake. They can help you comprehend how to get shoplifting charges dropped in Louisiana, and provide the necessary support for your case. Whether you are dealing with a misdemeanor shoplifting first offense or subsequent offenses, Mr. Carl Barkemeyer can help you secure an optimal outcome in your case.

A shoplifting conviction can impact your life in diverse ways, even the life of those closest to you. Therefore, you must do everything in your power to avoid a shoplifting conviction on your record. Ideally, you shouldn’t commit your shoplifting defenses to just anyone. Instead, you should hire an experienced shoplifting lawyer who knows what to look for in your case to ensure an optimal outcome. While you might be tempted to take the stand and defend yourself in court, you should consider the impact a failed trail will have on the people closest to you.

Then again, the bigger question isn’t “can shoplifting charges be dropped”? Rather, it is “how to get shoplifting charges dropped”?

Stealing from Target

Have you been accused of stealing from target? if you are, then you have come to the right place. Theft in Louisiana is a serious offense, and as such, you shouldn’t leave your shoplifting defenses to just anyone.

The state of Louisiana defines theft or theft as the misappropriation or taking of valuable items without the consent of the owner. As regard shoplifting, it is the taking of valuable items from a store without duly purchasing them from the store owner. 

As defined by Louisiana RS 14: 67, a theft charge would be labeled against an accused if he/she has an intent to deprive another of a valuable item, permanently. Thus, if you are caught with items that you are yet to purchase from Target, you would have to explain what your intentions are for taking such items without duly purchasing them from the counter.

Shoplifting and theft are part of the retail business. That’s why many retailers such as Target dedicate sizeable amounts of resources to their shrinkable and loss prevention strategies. One such strategy is the installation of CCTV cameras in and out of the store, and the use of RFID tags inside/on high theft merchandise. Hence, the reason why stealing from Target will always yield unfavorable outcomes.

How does target know that you have shoplifted?

While it isn’t impossible to shoplift from Target without getting caught, there is a high chance that your first time shoplifting from this gigantic retailer would be your last. Target deals with theft every day, and as such, it has gotten the experience needed to curb shoplifting activities within its stores.

Normally, shoplifters make their exit target stores when the unsuspecting attendant is preoccupied with rush-hour customers. Although shoplifters have succeeded with this strategy in the past, there are many reasons why such a strategy will not work this time.

Target has improved its loss prevention strategies in diverse ways, and as such, it will be near impossible to walk out of the store with unpurchased merchandise. Here are some of the obvious reasons why you may need a lawyer when accused of stealing at a target store.

1. Extensive CCTV coverage for their aisles. 

If you haven’t noticed, the ceiling of all Target stores is lined with premium quality CCTV cameras to record suspicious activities of shoppers. These cameras are monitored from the store’s opening hours to its closing hours. Therefore, it will be difficult to get anything past the CCTV cameras without getting caught by a Loss prevention officer. Given that these officers deal with shoplifters every day; it will be very easy for them to spot suspicious customers.

When a shoplifter is apprehended, footage of his/her escapade at the store will be reviewed by Target’s loss prevention team, and printed out for the law enforcement officers. Depending on the seriousness of the apprehension, the store may email copies of the footage to other stores or Target’s corporate headquarters.

2. RFID tags

While it is easy to spot the CCTV cameras lining the ceiling of a Target store, it isn’t so easy to spot RFID tagged merchandise. You may not know this, but Target makes it a point to use RFID tags on high theft merchandise.

The store will place an RFID tag inside a merchandise that is highly susceptible to theft, so shoplifters that take or misappropriate such merchandise will be apprehended at the door. Target stores that use RFID tags have readers at their entryways. So, when an RFID tagged merchandise is brought to the door, the readers go off.

Is it possible to buy an RFID tagged merchandise from target only to be stopped at the door for theft?

Highly unlikely.

When you buy products, the right way, from Target’s counter, the cashier will deactivate the RFID tag or supplant the product with an untagged one. That way, the readers won’t go off when you walk out the front door with your products. However, if you fail to follow the due process and walk out with an RFID tagged product, you will be apprehended for theft. This goes without saying that you’ll need a credible attorney to defend your civil rights when you are caught with an RFID tagged item at Target.

3. Loss prevention officers and strategically placed employees

Perhaps you have noticed Target employees roaming specific areas of the store while pretending to be doing one thing or another. Well, those areas hold the high theft merchandise of the store.

Target makes it a point to place one or two employees at specific areas in their store to discourage shoplifters from stealing their merchandise. In some cases, these employees are disguised in plain clothes pretending to be customers. They are trained to detect suspicious mannerisms in patrons, so don’t be surprised that they are watching your every move when you act suspicious around them. Simply put, they are Target’s human CCTV and they are very good at their jobs.

The ideal thing to do when you are caught by a loss prevention officer is to call Mr. Carl Barkemeyer for help. He is well-versed in Louisiana laws and he has acquired a wealth of experience in the defense and prosecution of theft-related cases. He is prepared to help you with your case, and he won’t stop fighting until a positive outcome is obtained.

4. Extensive footage and detailed review of customer activities

Unbeknownst to many shoplifters, Target keeps extensive footage of customers’ activities across its locations. They do so to review their processes and improve on them, and for the sake of catching a shoplifter in the act. If you visit a target store multiple times without making a purchase, you’ll be flagged by the loss prevention team. They’ll keep a close watch on your activities so you don’t steal merchandise from their store. Even if they don’t catch you in the act, they’ll review past footages to see what you’ve been doing in their store. If they find out that you have stolen merchandise, they’ll contact the police. The footage will be filed as evidence and you’ll be charged to court to defend your innocence.

You mustn’t say anything when apprehended for shoplifting in target, because anything you say can and will be used against you in court. Feel free to exercise your right to an attorney by calling Mr. Carl Barkemeyer for your case.

Target Shoplifting

Need help defending your integrity in court? Mr. Carl Barkemeyer, a criminal defense attorney in Louisiana, can help you with your court case. Having helped Louisiana and its encompassing areas for years, Carl Barkemeyer, Criminal Defense Attorney continues to handle different criminal justice and personal injury cases. We can provide the much-needed insight for obtaining optimal outcomes in your target shoplifting case. Our team of well-trained attorneys will educate you about your civil rights during our free consultations, and they’ll point you in the right direction during your hearing in court.

Target shoplifting is not something you want to be caught within Louisiana. Even if you don’t have a prior conviction on your record, the potential consequences of first-offense shoplifting can be severe. You might incur exorbitant cash fines or suffer a jail sentence with a permanent blemish on your record. Serious offenders may incur a cash penalty alongside a jail sentence. Hence, the importance of hiring a lawyer for your court hearings.

There are many reasons why people steal from Target. But, hunger and poverty are the most common. While no one hopes for the lack of food, hunger can be so overwhelming that you may be tempted to grab unpurchased merchandise off a shelf. Whatever might have inspired you into stealing or misappropriating unpurchased items at Target, you’ll need the representation of an aggressive lawyer before things spiral out of control.

Target shoplifting can also result from an impulsive urge to take or misappropriate items that don’t belong to you, even when you don’t find fulfillment in the act. This will not reduce the potential punishment of your offense, but with the help of an aggressive lawyer, you can mitigate the justice that is to follow your target shoplifting case.

Potential consequences of a target shoplifting conviction

As you already know, theft cases in Louisiana are not to be taken lightly. Theft will not only earn you time behind bars, but it will also make things difficult for you, post-prison. Keep in mind that your conviction records are readily available to employers in Louisiana, and as such, anyone interested in hiring you for a job can easily discover the shoplifting conviction on your record. Not to mention the challenge you’ll face in securing mortgages or loans for important projects.

Life is difficult as it is; don’t complicate things further by leaving your target shoplifting case to chance. Here are some of the potential consequences you may incur if you fail to hire a good lawyer for your Target shoplifting case. See this article on one person’s experience after being charged with shoplifting from Target.

·      Consequences for first offense shoplifting 

When it comes to theft and shoplifting cases in Louisiana, everything boils down to the dollar-worth of the items stolen and your lawyer’s aggressiveness in defending your rights in court. Even if the accused is a first-time offender, there’s still a high chance of incarceration. Normally the court will review the evidence labeled against you, the value of goods misappropriated or stolen, and your lawyer’s argument in court, to decide. If the case involves merchandise valued at $25,000 or above, you shall incur a jail term of not more than 20 years with hard labor. You may also incur the cash fines of shoplifting up to $50,000 or both.

Depending on the value of the item stolen or misappropriated at Target, cash fines of shoplifting can range from $1,000 to $50,000. Likewise, the jail term of shoplifting conviction may range from 6 months to 20 years depending on the value of item misappropriated or stolen.

·      If the alleged stolen goods are worth less than $1000 dollars with no prior shoplifting convictions: If a person steals goods worth less than $1000 and has no previous shoplifting history, he/she may either pay a fine of $1000 and/or spend 6 months in jail.

·      If the alleged stolen goods are worth $1000 dollars or more but less than $5000 with no prior shoplifting case: if a person shoplifts goods worth $1000 or more but less than $5000 and has had no prior shoplifting cases, he/she may be looking at either pay a fine of $1000 and/or spend up to two years in jail. This is a felony.

·      When the alleged value of goods amounts to a value of $5000 dollars or more, but less than a value of $25,000 dollars, the offender shall be imprisoned, with or without hard labor, for not more than 10 years, or may be fined not more than ten thousand dollars, or both.

·      If the alleged goods amount to a value of $25,000 dollars or more, the defendant shall be imprisoned at hard labor for not more than 20 years, or may be fined not more than fifty thousand dollars, or both.

·      Consequences for a third-offense shoplifting charge 

All things considered, third-time offenders will incur harsher penalties than first-time offenders. As defined by Louisiana’s revised statue 14: 67, people with two or more theft convictions on their record shall be imprisoned or fined, or both. In this way, accused persons who are convicted for stealing amounts less than $1,000, will incur a cash fine of not more than $2,000, as opposed to the $1,000 cash fine purported for first-time offenders. Likewise, a 2-year jail term shall be imposed on such individual, as opposed to the 6-months jail term purported for first-time offenders. Despite the harsh penalties, having an aggressive lawyer can help mitigate the justice that is to follow a Target shoplifting conviction. That is why it is important to hire an experienced Louisiana shoplifting lawyer for your case.

Target Shoplifting Policy

Target protects its assets, merchandise, and equipment with the help of security specialists and loss prevention officers. The loss prevention team handles every responsibility involved in ensuring the safety of Target’s patrons and employees. All target stores have a cordial relationship with the local law enforcement officials, and they use security cameras to monitor suspicious activities in their store. If you are looking to gain insight into Target’s shoplifting policy and strategies, here is an overview of Target’s shoplifting policy:

·      Target Loss prevention policy 

Target’s loss prevention policy aims to mitigate theft and assist in the recovery of stolen or misappropriated merchandise through effective strategies such as the use of video surveillance cameras. This policy applies to both the interior and exterior of all Target locations across the globe, and as such, shoplifters who are caught on the Target premises will be held in violation of the policy and prosecuted accordingly.

All Target stores have a dedicated staffing budget for asset protection and security personnel who detect and apprehend shoplifters. The procedure for apprehending suspected shoplifters may differ from store to store, but here is the more generalized loss prevention policy for target stores across Louisiana.

General Target Loss Prevention Policy

Target is committed to keeping its customers and employees safe from organized crimes. As such, information regarding their loss prevention policy are not readily available to the general public. Thankfully, our long-time involvement in target shoplifting cases across Louisiana and its encompassing areas, have made us realize that all Target stores across the country work closely with local law enforcement. Therefore, anyone apprehended on account of shoplifting will be arraigned with a theft arrest and prosecuted accordingly. All legal fees and criminal fines incurred will be imposed on the shoplifter. Depending on the circumstances surrounding each case, you can expect cash fines for shoplifting at target, to vary from state to state.

Target’s loss prevention officers are responsible for identifying high theft merchandise in the store and keeping detailed documentation of shoplifting occurrences at their location. They are also responsible for internal theft investigations aimed at identifying shoplifting trends and habits in the store.

All security specialists at Target stores are members of the loss prevention/asset protection team. They are trained specialists who work proactively at the store’s entrance to deal with emergencies and prevent escalation during a crisis. They are responsible for apprehending suspects, recovering stolen merchandise, and documenting security issues. If ever you are caught committing theft or theft in a Target store, these security specialists will be responsible for you until you are handed over to the police for further questioning.

·      Target suspect apprehension policy

Once you are found concealing items that you have not paid for (on camera or by a nearby employee), you’ll become a shoplifting suspect. At this point, a target security specialist or loss prevention officer will approach you, advising you to cooperate so they don’t get physical with you. Target security specialist and asset protection officers are authorized to apprehend suspects anywhere on Target’s premises. So, don’t be surprised if you are confronted outside the store for concealing items that have not been purchased.

Target security specialists are advised to approach suspects in twos or threes, so suspects have little or no chance of escaping. Following an apprehension, Target loss prevention officers will take suspects their office for questioning while they wait for law enforcement officers to arrive at the scene.

Unbeknownst to many shoplifters, you are not obligated to provide answers to any questions asked by Target’s loss prevention team. We advise that you don’t say a word to the officers at target or anybody else when you are arraigned for a crime. Because, the moment you are apprehended for shoplifting, anything you say will be used against you in court. Keep in mind that the evidence recorded by the loss prevention team will be handed over to the police when they arrive. So, before you say something that will further complicate your already not-so-good position, call Mr. Carl Barkemeyer.

Normally, Target security specialists will have the police proceed with a theft arrest if stolen items are found on your person at the time of apprehension. Nevertheless, Louisiana laws may differ slightly from other state laws when it comes to the apprehension and detention of suspected shoplifters. For optimal outcome, call an experienced shoplifting lawyer in Louisiana.

Theft charges in Louisiana are a particular interest of Mr. Carl Barkemeyer, and he has acquired a wealth of experience defending offenders of the crime. Regardless of whether the case at hand is your second shoplifting charge in Louisiana or not, Mr. Carl Barkemeyer will fight aggressively to mitigate and possibly annihilate the potential penalties of the shoplifting charge labeled against you.

Target Shoplifting Fines

The State of Louisiana, like every other state in the US, has guidelines defining specific dollar amounts as the criterion for determining the severity of a shoplifting case. Thus, the market value of the item stolen or misappropriated will determine whether your shoplifting case is a misdemeanor or a felony. In general, shoplifting accusations where the stolen amount is $1,000 or less, are regarded as misdemeanor offenses. Likewise, shoplifting cases where the dollar worth of merchandise is above $1,000, is regarded as a felony.

Misdemeanor theft Louisiana will expose you to a 6-months jail term, $1,000 cash fine, or both if you are convicted for the crime. However, if you are charged with a felony shoplifting offense, you’ll stand the risk of incurring a jail term of up to 20 years, a cash fine of not more than $50,000, or both. Depending on who you have defending your rights in court, these gruesome penalties may reduce or increase exponentially. Not to mention the moral impact a conviction will have on your life and the lives of those closest to you.

Don’t leave your trial to chance, call Mr. Carl Barkemeyer to help you with your shoplifting defenses.

Caught Shoplifting On Camera After the Fact

Getting caught shoplifting on camera after the fact can complicate things for you if you are looking to get a shoplifting charge expunged. However, it is not the worst thing that can happen in a shoplifting case. With the help of an aggressive attorney, you can fight the evidence condemning you for the crime and defend your innocence in court. We recommend that you take the time to understand your position as a defendant and the possible outcomes of your case. Carl Barkemeyer, Criminal Defense Attorney offers consultation services to help clients understand the court processes and point them in the right direction as regards their court case. However serious, Mr. Carl Barkemeyer can help you solicit for optimal outcome in your case.

All target Locations have CCTV surveillance cameras, which they use in monitoring customer’s mannerisms in their stores. Thus, it is expected that your supposed incidence at target will be caught on, at the very least, one of Target’s CCTV cameras. The team of aggressive lawyers at the Carl Barkemeyer, Criminal Defense Attorney firm understands the need to prepare for snags like this in a shoplifting case. Therefore, they will leave no stones unturned in preparing a legal defense for anything the prosecutor throws at you during your court hearing. Preparation is the key to all successes; and you can trust the team of well-versed attorneys at the Carl Barkemeyer, Criminal Defense Attorney firm tour case.

When it comes to Louisiana shoplifting prosecution and defense, the verdict is always derived from the facts provided. But then again, not all incriminatory pieces of evidence are admissible in court. If the evidence filed against you was obtained illegally or in violation of your civil rights, your attorney can argue that such evidence is not appropriate and should be dropped. Hence, the importance of having a good lawyer supporting you during your Louisiana shoplifting trial. But, if you fail to hire an aggressive attorney for your case despite being caught shoplifting on camera after the fact, it will be near impossible to avoid the justice that follows.

Mr. Carl Barkemeyer and his team of experienced attorneys are here in Louisiana, and they are ready to help. Don’t leave your case to chance, call their local office.

Target Theft: Who To Call

Target theft is a serious accusation that shouldn’t be taken lightly in Louisiana. Not only will you have problems getting a good job, but it will also ruin any political ambitions that you are nursing right now. With so much at stake, you shouldn’t waste time contemplating your next course of action. Call our shoplifting defense lawyers to try to get your criminal record clean.

Despite the harsh penalties that follow a shoplifting conviction, you shouldn’t fret when you or someone you love is accused of committing theft in Louisiana. Contrary to what you may think, a shoplifting accusation is not a conviction. You can still defend your innocence in court.

Believe it or not, you still have a great chance of walking out of the courtroom free and acquitted of your supposed crimes. With Mr. Carl Barkemeyer supporting you, your court case will be fair and unbiased.

Don’t waste any more time. Contact us today.