I was caught shoplifting and was sent home with a trespassin ticket, meaning icant enter the store for a year.. tehy said they would issue a letter to my mailing address? they said which is probably a fine? what happens next.. do i have to go to court? keep in mind i am 20 (biggest mistake of my life and for the first time) will i have a record for this i am planning to go into teaching and do not want it to ruin my career

Fr_Chuck

First you did not say where you were at>

In general it can be a letter giving you a date and time to go and be fingerprinted, photo'ed and given a date for court.

Or it could be just a court date, hard to say, you may want to get an attorney, ( which you needed before you confessed or agreed to anything)

magprob

It will be a letter advising you of your requirement to pay the civil portion of the case. Shop lifting has two elements. Criminal and civil. The civil portion will be a $250.00 (or more depending on the state) fee to repay the store for man hours and other costs of processing your case. It will be through a collection agency and will end up on your credit report if you do not pay it, and could become a probation violation if unpaid.

puhdunda

You may want to check this story out. I found this story when looking for clarification on how retailers can circumvent due process via civil penalties. If you are going to receive a collection letter, this article may give you insight into what is going on.
Stores seek civil damages against shoplifters www.privateofficer.com « PRIVATE OFFICER BREAKING NEWS(www.privateofficer.com)

Depending on where you are and the price of your theft, you may be "billed" for 3 times the cost of the item(s) and you may be asked to "pay pre-litigation" legal fees. The article explains some of the possibilities better than I can.

If law enforcement was not involved you might only have a credit problem brewing.

people who make mistakes often make the best teachers.

big mistake

have you received the letter just yet