Retail Fraud Attorney Westland

Hire a Top Rated Lawyer for your Westland Retail Fraud Defense

If you need to go to the 18th District Court for your Westland misdemeanor or felony retail fraud allegation, you need an exceptional and zealous criminal defense lawyer who will fight on your behalf.   No matter if your accusation is from  a national retail store (such as Target, Kroger, or Kohls), or a locally based Westland business we can help defend you. Get aggressive lawyer Daniel Hilf to handle your shoplifting defense for immediate action and zealous steps taken toward achieving the best results given the facts and circumstances of your case. Leading criminal defense specialist Daniel Hilf appears before the Judges at the 18th District Court (36675 Ford Road, Westland 48185), and throughout the metropolitan Detroit area on a regular basis, defending clients for all retail fraud related charges.  

Having to go before a Judge to address a shoplifting accusation may seem overwhelming, frightening, and depressing.   It is important to remember that this type of a charge does not make you a bad person.  In fact, retail fraud is prosecuted by the Westland City Attorney and the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office on a daily basis , but it is often due to a temporary lapse in judgment.  However, just because these charges are heard daily at the 18th District Court it does not mean that there are not serious long term repercussions or that it will not affect your future in an extremely negative way.  Any retail theft conviction can permanently alter the course of your future, because a sentence from this conviction may include any or all of the following outcomes: the loss of your freedom (incarceration); probation with strict supervisory conditions; loss of employment; professional licensing issues (for lawyers, accountants, stock brokers, nurses and other positions that require either 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.  Without a shadow of a doubt - you need the best lawyer that you can hire, who is one hundred percent on your side and working to obtain your best result.  It may even be possible to keep this conviction from appearing on your record, if you receive a diversionary sentence.

Retail theft can theoretically be committed in several manners, including: when store merchandise is stolen or an attempt to steal store merchandise is made by a person; 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.  Felony and misdemeanor shoplifting cases that are prosecuted at the 18th District Court in Westland and other Wayne County courtrooms include the following:

First Degree Retail Fraud is a felony charge that carries up to a 5 year maximum prison sentence (however, incarceration can be avoided at the Judge's discretion because there is no mandatory minimum sentence that is required) 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.  

Organized Retail Theft is felony charge that carries up to a 5 year maximum prison sentence (however, incarceration can be avoided at the Judge's discretion because there is no mandatory minimum sentence that is required) that is also subject to applicable habitual offender sentencing provisions.  The allegation is prosecuted in Westland and other State of Michigan courtrooms when the prosecution believes it has probable cause that the intent of the accused is to commit retail theft from one or more stores and then resell the stolen merchandise to other persons or businesses.

Second Degree Retail Fraud is a misdemeanor charge that carries up to a 1 year maximum county jail sentence (however, incarceration can be avoided at the Judge's discretion because there is no mandatory minimum sentence that is required), 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.  

Third Degree Retail Fraud is a misdemeanor charge that carries up to a 93 day maximum county jail sentence (however, incarceration can be avoided at the Judge's discretion because there is no mandatory minimum sentence that is required), that is prosecuted under either State law or local ordinance, when the merchandise involved in the offense is less than $200 (two hundred dollars).

Removal of a Theft Detection Device is a misdemeanor charges that carries up to a 1 year maximum county jail sentence (however, incarceration can be avoided at the Judge's discretion because there is no mandatory minimum sentence that is required), that is prosecuted under State law.

Searching for a Top Rated Attorney near Westland to Properly Defend a Retail Fraud Arrest?

A large number of stores in Westland have well designed loss prevention practices with the goal of reducing overall retail fraud losses, avoiding contested litigation, and deterring others from committing store theft.  A well trained team of loss protection workers with surveillance equipment (such as merchandise sensors, high resolution video cameras, and closed circuit television) are commonly found within large retail stores for the purpose of combating the liabilities and costs associated with retail theft.  Even with technology and manpower, mistakes are still made and persons are still sometimes falsely arrested due to errors in judgment (such as false identification and wrongfully interpreting a situation), cultural related issues, and procedural errors.

If you retain attorney Daniel Hilf to defend your Westland retail fraud accusation he will obtain 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.  Attorney Hilf will provide you with solid advice and his expert opinion concerning whether to conduct a trial in front of a Judge or jury, or whether to choose to accept a plea or plea bargain and try and persuade the Judge to sentence you reasonably and leniently. However, it is ultimately your choice to have a trial or to seek a resolution of your case through a plea, plea bargain, and/or sentence agreement (provided that a plea bargain and/or sentence agreement is available), and attorney Hilf will fight for your best outcome. 

Do not delay in your decision to hire an experienced legal representative to help you with your Court matter.  As stated previously, a theft conviction will likely cause you severe difficulties (in addition to the strict criminal penalties available to your Judge), including making it extremely challenging to find a well paying job or a highly desired career, because many companies do not want to risk hiring someone convicted of any theft related offense.  Hire a respected defense attorney for your Westland based allegation  - attorney Daniel Hilf - to help you, because his strong acumen and his over twenty years of experience inside and outside of Michigan courtrooms is exactly the type of legal representation that you need to confront a retail fraud charge.

If you have to appear before a Judge or magistrate due to a Westland shoplifting offense, now is the right time to make an impactful and solid decision concerning your legal representation. Contact Hilf & Hilf, PLC to obtain the high quality legal defense that you need for your retail fraud case.