http://www2.co.multnomah.or.us/County_M ... tation.pdf See page 4. So, if you want to walk out of Best Buy with a $450 TV, with a little meth in your pocket, spraypainting your tag on the window as you leave, then drive away recklessly with a suspended license, eluding the cops before you crash into a mailbox and resist arrest (without hurting the cops), all the while posting illegal flyers on the mailboxes you didn't hit...you can walk away with a slap on the wrist. You won't be prosecuted. Free stuff in Oregon, everybody!
That must be Obi Wan Kenobi in his younger, reckless years. PS - I don't know if it was this post or one or two before it, but I just noticed I'm now married to GPDO. Now, get me my slippers and bring me the remote, woman.
But the DA's office will still prosecute sex crimes and any firearms law violation! Seriously, what the hell are these people thinking? Prosecuting crimes is a core function of government. Some types of victimless crimes that a substantial percentage of the people don't think should be crimes at all, okay, I can see using prosecutorial discretion to cut those out and save money. But theft up to $500???? That's crazy. Cut back on welfare or social services or the animal control unit instead. Get rid of school crossing guards and recruit parents to do that job on a volunteer basis. Lots of other ways to cut back.
Seriously, as I understand their little powerpoint, they're essentially saying that if you walk into a Wal-mart and put a $499 tv in your cart, then just push it out to the car and steal it...they won't prosecute?! They're essentially encouraging every petty thief in the state to just move on on. I don't understand the left coast.
See, that just happened to me...I posted it somewhere on this forum. I guy steels a check made out to my power company from my mail box. Purchases a $600 vacuum cleaner from walmart. Register prompted for an ID. He produces a DL that was denied twice. Produces another DL and it was approved. REMEMBER the check was made out to my power company! My bank refunded my money but walmart sold their dept to a collection company that is hassling me about the $600 purchase. NOW, this guy was released from prison on Sept 8th, stole my check on sept 9th and purchased the merchandise on sept 10th. He did it again to someone else on sept 20th and is now wanted for other crimes.
You need to get a police report on the crime and keep it with you at all times (your wife too, if it was a joint account). The last thing you ever want is a miscommunication with the police about you passing bad checks that leads to a warrant. If you're ever hassled about it, you can produce proof that your check was stolen and it wasn't you. That's Clark Howard's advice, and I think it's probably good. You can beat the rap, but you could also (in this case) beat the ride with that report. I wouldn't trust Wal-Mart to have the brains not to swear out a complaint.