I was caught by an LP awhile ago shoplifting at Store name in San Francisco, CA. The amount total was almost $35-$36. No police was called. They gave me a letter stating I may receive a claim against me. I understand that I must pay a penalty but I checked a website One lawyer there advice people who has same situation as I do. I can write a letter to the law firm asking me to pay for the claim. This how the letter goes:
Begin Letter
I am in receipt of your demand in the amount of ____ for an incident that occured on __
As you know, Penal code 490.5 allows you to recover damages of $50-$500, and I cannot understand how you arrived at the figure in your letter. All oif the sote employees involved were already working their normal shifts, so your only losses were damaged merchandise valued at__.
I am offering to settle this matter for $50.00, the nominal damages apparently presumed by statute. A money order for this amount is enclosed; you may accept this settlement proposal simply by cashing the money order and sending me a full release.
End Letter
My question is, is this true? The lawyer from this website said that the law firms that sends out these letters are only accustomed to two things: people who ignore them and those who are scared by the letters and pay their exorbitant demands. If they don't accept the offer to settle, just ignore them.
Is this possibly correct? He has a guide titled How to handle Merchant's Demand for Payment after a shoplifting Arrest in California. Here are the guidelines:
f you're a lawyer who sends out these letters, stop reading now
I hold these attorneys in very low regard. If you're one of them and your feelings get hurt easily, you probably won't want to read the rest. Plus, I'm going to tell people your secrets and ruin your money-making racket.
2
Don't call them, talk to them, or make deals with them!
These guys get more stern with every letter, demanding even more money each time. Ignore their threats; they rarely, if ever actually sue anyone. If they call you, tell them you will only communicate with them in writing, then hang up. They're just hoping you'll be scared enough to send them money. If you make an agreement to pay them over time, it's probably an enforceable contract... even if a lawyer COULD get you out of it, it would cost a lot more than you agreed to pay in the first place.
3
Read Penal Code §490.5
The full text of all California statutes is available at http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/calaw.html
490.5. (a) Upon a first conviction for petty theft involving
merchandise taken from a merchant's premises or a book or other
library materials taken from a library facility, a person shall be
punished by a mandatory fine of not less than fifty dollars ($50) and
not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000) for each such violation;
and may also be punished by imprisonment in the county jail, not
exceeding six months, or both such fine and imprisonment.
(b) When an unemancipated minor's willful conduct would constitute
petty theft involving merchandise taken from a merchant's premises
or a book or other library materials taken from a library facility,
any merchant or library facility who has been injured by that conduct
may bring a civil action against the parent or legal guardian having
control and custody of the minor. For the purposes of those actions
the misconduct of the unemancipated minor shall be imputed to the
parent or legal guardian having control and custody of the minor.
The parent or legal guardian having control or custody of an
unemancipated minor whose conduct violates this subdivision shall be
jointly and severally liable with the minor to a merchant or to a
library facility for damages of not less than fifty dollars ($50) nor
more than five hundred dollars ($500), plus costs. In addition to
the foregoing damages, the parent or legal guardian shall be jointly
and severally liable with the minor to the merchant for the retail
value of the merchandise if it is not recovered in a merchantable
condition, or to a library facility for the fair market value of its
book or other library materials. Recovery of these damages may be
had in addition to, and is not limited by, any other provision of law
which limits the liability of a parent or legal guardian for the
tortious conduct of a minor. An action for recovery of damages,
pursuant to this subdivision, may be brought in small claims court if
the total damages do not exceed the jurisdictional limit of that
court, or in any other appropriate court; however, total damages,
including the value of the merchandise or book or other library
materials, shall not exceed five hundred dollars ($500) for each
action brought under this section.
The provisions of this subdivision are in addition to other civil
remedies and do not limit merchants or other persons to elect to
pursue other civil remedies, except that the provisions of Section
1714.1 of the Civil Code shall not apply herein.
(c) When an adult or emancipated minor has unlawfully taken
merchandise from a merchant's premises, or a book or other library
materials from a library facility, the adult or emancipated minor
shall be liable to the merchant or library facility for damages of
not less than fifty dollars ($50) nor more than five hundred dollars
($500), plus costs. In addition to the foregoing damages, the adult
or emancipated minor shall be liable to the merchant for the retail
value of the merchandise if it is not recovered in merchantable
condition, or to a library facility for the fair market value of its
book or other library materials. An action for recovery of damages,
pursuant to this subdivision, may be brought in small claims court if
the total damages do not exceed the jurisdictional limit of such
court, or in any other appropriate court. The provisions of this
subdivision are in addition to other civil remedies and do not limit
merchants or other persons to elect to pursue other civil remedies.
4
Okay, I've read it... what does it mean?
We're concerned about subsections (b), which makes parents liable for a child's actions, and subsection (c), which applies to adults. Both say a minor or adult who shoplifts "shall be liable to the merchant or library facility for damages of not less than fifty dollars ($50) nor more than five hundred dollars ($500), plus costs," and "the adult or emancipated minor shall be liable to the merchant for the retail value of the merchandise if it is not recovered in merchantable condition." That means you're required to compensate them for their losses, plus the cost of any merchandise that's too damaged to re-sell. If you take an ice cream bar and it melts before they catch you, add the 89 cents it would cost you to buy it; in the question posted by one Avvo user, her child took a bottled soft drink which was recovered unopened, so it was "in merchantable condition" and there were no additional damages.
5
What are damages?
Damages are the losses someone suffers as a result of your actions (or your child's). What are the merchant's damages in this case? The store clerk or loss prevention employee who arrested you is on salary, and would have been working, anyway, so they didn't incur any additional costs as a result. The only damages would be the cost of any merchandise they couldn't put back on the shelf and sell to somebody else.
What are costs?
In a small claims action, it's the filing fee, plus the costs of serving a the lawsuit on you. The filing fee is thirty dollars for claims of less than $1500, unless the person has filed more than 12 claims in the past 12 months; then the fees go up to $100. (Since these guys rarely, if ever, sue anyone, the fee would probably be $30.) It can cost up to a hundred dollars to hire a private process server to serve you with the summons, but small claims cases are typically mailed by the court clerk at minimal cost.
7
But they're threatening to add legal fees, and ruin my credit, too!
Penal Code §490.5 does not allow them to recover legal fees. They can't report you to a credit agency because you don't legally owe them anything unless they successfully sue you.
8
If they can't get this much money in a lawsuit, why do they send out these letters?
They make money on sheer volume. They're kind of like the spammers who send millions of emails, knowing the vast majority will be deleted or filtered out by spam filters. Even if a small percentage of the people they contact actually respond, they still make plenty of money -- especially since they demand amounts they could never justify in court.
9
So what if they actually take me to small claims court?
First of all, lawyers aren't allowed in small claims court unless they're making a claim for their own loss, so someone from the store, not the law firm, would have to come to court. I don't know who they'd send; I'm on an email list of two thousand criminal defense attorneys in California, and nobody has ever heard of an actual lawsuit under this section. You'd be up against a non-lawyer who probably wouldn't know how to\ present the case. Besides, the most they could get is $500 (plus the value of any damaged merchandise) and they'd have to prove their damages to get to that amount. It's very unlikely they would bother.
10
I'm thinking about paying just so they'll leave me alone.
When my clients say this, I send the following letter to the merchant's lawyer, with a money order for fifty dollars. It has never failed. ***BEGIN LETTER*** I am in receipt of your demand in the amount of _____ for an incident that occurred on _______. As you know, Penal Code §490.5 allows you to recover damages of $50-$500, and I cannot understand how you arrived at the figure in your letter. All of the store employees involved were already working their normal shifts, so your only losses were damaged merchandise valued at _______. I am offering to settle this matter for $50.00, the nominal damages apparently presumed by statute. A money order for this amount is enclosed; you may accept this settlement proposal simply by cashing the money order and sending me a full release. ***END LETTER*** On the back of the money order, I write "Payment accepted as satisfaction of all claims."
Cause I'm scared if I do this..and I don't want to pay the max amount of $500. Some of the person who had done this letter got a letter back from the law firm and they need to pay $150 rather than paying the amount of $300. Can you help me on this. I'm just preparing myself if I get the civil penalty letter. Thanks.
PLease HELP!!!
Begin Letter
I am in receipt of your demand in the amount of ____ for an incident that occured on __
As you know, Penal code 490.5 allows you to recover damages of $50-$500, and I cannot understand how you arrived at the figure in your letter. All oif the sote employees involved were already working their normal shifts, so your only losses were damaged merchandise valued at__.
I am offering to settle this matter for $50.00, the nominal damages apparently presumed by statute. A money order for this amount is enclosed; you may accept this settlement proposal simply by cashing the money order and sending me a full release.
End Letter
My question is, is this true? The lawyer from this website said that the law firms that sends out these letters are only accustomed to two things: people who ignore them and those who are scared by the letters and pay their exorbitant demands. If they don't accept the offer to settle, just ignore them.
Is this possibly correct? He has a guide titled How to handle Merchant's Demand for Payment after a shoplifting Arrest in California. Here are the guidelines:
f you're a lawyer who sends out these letters, stop reading now
I hold these attorneys in very low regard. If you're one of them and your feelings get hurt easily, you probably won't want to read the rest. Plus, I'm going to tell people your secrets and ruin your money-making racket.
2
Don't call them, talk to them, or make deals with them!
These guys get more stern with every letter, demanding even more money each time. Ignore their threats; they rarely, if ever actually sue anyone. If they call you, tell them you will only communicate with them in writing, then hang up. They're just hoping you'll be scared enough to send them money. If you make an agreement to pay them over time, it's probably an enforceable contract... even if a lawyer COULD get you out of it, it would cost a lot more than you agreed to pay in the first place.
3
Read Penal Code §490.5
The full text of all California statutes is available at http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/calaw.html
490.5. (a) Upon a first conviction for petty theft involving
merchandise taken from a merchant's premises or a book or other
library materials taken from a library facility, a person shall be
punished by a mandatory fine of not less than fifty dollars ($50) and
not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000) for each such violation;
and may also be punished by imprisonment in the county jail, not
exceeding six months, or both such fine and imprisonment.
(b) When an unemancipated minor's willful conduct would constitute
petty theft involving merchandise taken from a merchant's premises
or a book or other library materials taken from a library facility,
any merchant or library facility who has been injured by that conduct
may bring a civil action against the parent or legal guardian having
control and custody of the minor. For the purposes of those actions
the misconduct of the unemancipated minor shall be imputed to the
parent or legal guardian having control and custody of the minor.
The parent or legal guardian having control or custody of an
unemancipated minor whose conduct violates this subdivision shall be
jointly and severally liable with the minor to a merchant or to a
library facility for damages of not less than fifty dollars ($50) nor
more than five hundred dollars ($500), plus costs. In addition to
the foregoing damages, the parent or legal guardian shall be jointly
and severally liable with the minor to the merchant for the retail
value of the merchandise if it is not recovered in a merchantable
condition, or to a library facility for the fair market value of its
book or other library materials. Recovery of these damages may be
had in addition to, and is not limited by, any other provision of law
which limits the liability of a parent or legal guardian for the
tortious conduct of a minor. An action for recovery of damages,
pursuant to this subdivision, may be brought in small claims court if
the total damages do not exceed the jurisdictional limit of that
court, or in any other appropriate court; however, total damages,
including the value of the merchandise or book or other library
materials, shall not exceed five hundred dollars ($500) for each
action brought under this section.
The provisions of this subdivision are in addition to other civil
remedies and do not limit merchants or other persons to elect to
pursue other civil remedies, except that the provisions of Section
1714.1 of the Civil Code shall not apply herein.
(c) When an adult or emancipated minor has unlawfully taken
merchandise from a merchant's premises, or a book or other library
materials from a library facility, the adult or emancipated minor
shall be liable to the merchant or library facility for damages of
not less than fifty dollars ($50) nor more than five hundred dollars
($500), plus costs. In addition to the foregoing damages, the adult
or emancipated minor shall be liable to the merchant for the retail
value of the merchandise if it is not recovered in merchantable
condition, or to a library facility for the fair market value of its
book or other library materials. An action for recovery of damages,
pursuant to this subdivision, may be brought in small claims court if
the total damages do not exceed the jurisdictional limit of such
court, or in any other appropriate court. The provisions of this
subdivision are in addition to other civil remedies and do not limit
merchants or other persons to elect to pursue other civil remedies.
4
Okay, I've read it... what does it mean?
We're concerned about subsections (b), which makes parents liable for a child's actions, and subsection (c), which applies to adults. Both say a minor or adult who shoplifts "shall be liable to the merchant or library facility for damages of not less than fifty dollars ($50) nor more than five hundred dollars ($500), plus costs," and "the adult or emancipated minor shall be liable to the merchant for the retail value of the merchandise if it is not recovered in merchantable condition." That means you're required to compensate them for their losses, plus the cost of any merchandise that's too damaged to re-sell. If you take an ice cream bar and it melts before they catch you, add the 89 cents it would cost you to buy it; in the question posted by one Avvo user, her child took a bottled soft drink which was recovered unopened, so it was "in merchantable condition" and there were no additional damages.
5
What are damages?
Damages are the losses someone suffers as a result of your actions (or your child's). What are the merchant's damages in this case? The store clerk or loss prevention employee who arrested you is on salary, and would have been working, anyway, so they didn't incur any additional costs as a result. The only damages would be the cost of any merchandise they couldn't put back on the shelf and sell to somebody else.
What are costs?
In a small claims action, it's the filing fee, plus the costs of serving a the lawsuit on you. The filing fee is thirty dollars for claims of less than $1500, unless the person has filed more than 12 claims in the past 12 months; then the fees go up to $100. (Since these guys rarely, if ever, sue anyone, the fee would probably be $30.) It can cost up to a hundred dollars to hire a private process server to serve you with the summons, but small claims cases are typically mailed by the court clerk at minimal cost.
7
But they're threatening to add legal fees, and ruin my credit, too!
Penal Code §490.5 does not allow them to recover legal fees. They can't report you to a credit agency because you don't legally owe them anything unless they successfully sue you.
8
If they can't get this much money in a lawsuit, why do they send out these letters?
They make money on sheer volume. They're kind of like the spammers who send millions of emails, knowing the vast majority will be deleted or filtered out by spam filters. Even if a small percentage of the people they contact actually respond, they still make plenty of money -- especially since they demand amounts they could never justify in court.
9
So what if they actually take me to small claims court?
First of all, lawyers aren't allowed in small claims court unless they're making a claim for their own loss, so someone from the store, not the law firm, would have to come to court. I don't know who they'd send; I'm on an email list of two thousand criminal defense attorneys in California, and nobody has ever heard of an actual lawsuit under this section. You'd be up against a non-lawyer who probably wouldn't know how to\ present the case. Besides, the most they could get is $500 (plus the value of any damaged merchandise) and they'd have to prove their damages to get to that amount. It's very unlikely they would bother.
10
I'm thinking about paying just so they'll leave me alone.
When my clients say this, I send the following letter to the merchant's lawyer, with a money order for fifty dollars. It has never failed. ***BEGIN LETTER*** I am in receipt of your demand in the amount of _____ for an incident that occurred on _______. As you know, Penal Code §490.5 allows you to recover damages of $50-$500, and I cannot understand how you arrived at the figure in your letter. All of the store employees involved were already working their normal shifts, so your only losses were damaged merchandise valued at _______. I am offering to settle this matter for $50.00, the nominal damages apparently presumed by statute. A money order for this amount is enclosed; you may accept this settlement proposal simply by cashing the money order and sending me a full release. ***END LETTER*** On the back of the money order, I write "Payment accepted as satisfaction of all claims."
Cause I'm scared if I do this..and I don't want to pay the max amount of $500. Some of the person who had done this letter got a letter back from the law firm and they need to pay $150 rather than paying the amount of $300. Can you help me on this. I'm just preparing myself if I get the civil penalty letter. Thanks.
PLease HELP!!!
