Provo City Retail Theft Charges
Have you been charged in the Provo City Justice Court? Here is what you can expect.
(1). Your Citation. Normally you are not arrested and booked, but cited and released. The citation states that you must call the Provo City Justice Court within 14 days to set up a court hearing.

(2). Arraignment. The first court date for your Provo City Retail Theft charge will be an Arraignment. Arraignments are very limited in scope. All that normally occurs in an Arrangement is that the charges are read aloud in court, or the public reading is waived. Second, you plead guilty or not guilty. There are no motions to suppress argued at this time. The entire case is not tried at the Arraignment.

When you hire an attorney the Arraignment is often waived and a Pretrial Conference is immediately set.

See this video on what happens at Arraignments.

(3). Discovery. Sometime after your Arraignment you will receive the standard discovery on your case. Standard discovery in Retail Theft cases is generally the police report and any theft protection employee’s statement. Any additional discovery, above that you will need to make a specific request. Any police body camera footage, 911 calls, police car dash cam footage or store surveillance are examples where specific requests are needed.
See this video on what discovery is.

(4). Pretrial Conference. Your case can resolve at the Arraignment or the Pretrial Conference. At the Pretrial Conference on your Retail Theft case you have the chance to discuss any plea bargain or sentence bargain with the prosecuting attorney. Guilty pleas with immediate sentencing are the norm at Pretrial Conferences.
There can be one Pretrial Conference or five Pretrials, it just depends on how many the judge allows and how the judge wants to push on this case.

(5). Pretrial Motions. Motions to suppress evidence are not always filed in every case. Motions to suppress evidence asks the justice court judge to eliminate or suppress certain evidence because it was illegally obtained by the police. In addition to motions to suppress, there can be Miranda violation motions, motions to eliminate confessions, illegal confessions motions and motion in limine to name a few common motions.

(6). Final Pretrial Conference. When a jury trial or bench trial is asked for by the defense, the justice court judge will set a Final Pretrial Conference. Mostly at the Pretrial Conference you discuss any jury instruction disputes and have any motions heard.

(7). Jury Trial / Bench Trial. When the judge is both the fact finder and determines the law it is a bench trial. The judge alone, without a jury hears the Retail Theft case. When a jury trial is requested, then the jury is the ultimate finder of the facts and the judge remains the determines the law.

(8). Sentencing. You have a right to be sentenced no sooner than 5 days and no later than 45 days unless you waive your time for sentencing. If you plead guilty at a Pretrial Conference, the defendant often waives his time for sentencing and is immediately sentenced.

(9). De Novo Appeals. If you plead guilty and are sentenced, or you lose your jury or bench trial, you have a right to appeal de novo to the district court. All Retail Theft charges in the Provo City Justice Court are appealed to the Provo 4th Judicial District Court.

(10). Do it Agan and All Over in the District Court. When you appeal De Novo to the Provo District Court you literally do the entire case all over again, but this time in front of a sitting District Court Judge. The witnesses take the stand, opening argument are heard and it is an entire new trial.

(11). Appeal from District Court. If you decide to appeal your Provo District Court Retail Theft conviction, it is appealed to the Utah Court of Appeals. Your appellate grounds are limited to statutory and constitutional interpretation grounds. It is not a “do over” appeal like you had from the justice court to the district court. An appeal from the District Court that originated in the Justice Court is on the cold hard record. Transcripts will be ordered and the appeal will be heard by a panel of three appellate judges. No new evidence is taken or witnesses sworn in.

What is Retail Theft in Provo?
Retail Theft is the unlawful and intentional taking of merchandise from a store. You can’t accidentally commit Retail Theft when something accidentally fell into your pocket. If your friend was messing with you and placed an item in your pocket without your knowledge, that is not Retail Theft. Retail Theft is intentional conduct.

Retail Theft in the Provo City Justice Court is a Class B Misdemeanor.
Attempted Retail Theft is a Class C Misdemeanor.

Common Plea Bargains for Provo Retail Theft Charges.
It is common for first time offenders to receive a first-time offender program where no guilt is adjudicated against the defendant.
If you have prior Retail Theft convictions you may be able to plea bargain an attempted Retail Theft, a Class C Misdemeanor.
If Provo City has evidentiary problems with their case, then you may receive a dismissal or first-time offender program, even with prior convictions.

Common Probationary Terms for Provo Retail Theft Convictinons.
Common probation terms for first time Retail Theft convictions are:
(1). 12 Months Court Probation. Court probation is also called bench, or informal probation. Sometimes you can negotiate for 6 months probation but that is often futile because you can always bring a motion to terminate probation early.
(2). $690 Bail Schedule Fine. The bail schedule fine for Retail Theft is $690. Bail schedule means the recommended fine, but the judge can impose anything from no fine to the max fine of $1,000.
(3). Jail. Unless you are a habitual, repeat offender, all jail time is usually suspended. The max jail for a Class B Misdemeanor is 180 days.
(4). Thinking Errors Class. With any Retail Theft sentence, generally you are ordered to take a cognitive awareness class or thinking errors class as part of your probation.
(5). Restitution. Criminal restitution is mandatory in all convictions. Restitution in Class B Retail Theft has to be under $500 because anything values over $500 are charged as a Misdemeanor A Retail Theft. Restitution is never dischargeable in Bankruptcy.

Expungement of Provo Retail Theft Convictions, Dismissals or Pleas in Abeyances.
You should always expunged your Provo City Retail Theft convictions. The waiting periods for expunging your Retail Theft case is:
(1). Felony. 7 years after the case closes successfully.
(2). Misdemeanor A. 5 years after the case closes successfully.
(3). Misdemeanor B. 4 years after the case closes successfully.
(4). Misdemeanor C. Attempted Retail Theft. 3 years after the case closes successfully.
(5). Pleas in Abeyances. 30 days after the case closes successfully.
(6). Not Guilty Verdicts. Immediately.
(7). Charges, but No Filings. 180 days.

Enchancements of Retail Theft Charges.

Prior Theft Convictions. All Retail Theft convictions are enhanceable. Meaning that any subsequent Retail Theft charge where you had prior Retail Theft convictions can be enhanced to a Misdemeanor A.

Values. Misdemeanor A Retail Theft charges are filed in the Provo District Court.

Particular Items. Certain items by themselves constitute a higher charge. Anytime a firearm or operatable motor vehicle is stolen, it is a Felony 2. Stolen catalytic converters or 25 pounds or more of a certain metal items are automatically Felony 3 charges.

CALL/TXT PROVO CITY JUSTICE COURT RETAIL THEFT ATTORNEY JAKE GUNTER (801) 373-6345. JAKE HAS 20 YEARS OF COURTROOM EXPERIENCE.

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