Yes, I've seen that too. Not as a lawyer, but in police logs in the local newspapers. People do get prosecuted for stealing a candy bar, sandwich, pack of cancer sticks, etc. I think the merchants are happy to call the cops and prosecute it to deter the person from doing it again and spread the word to others. Three towns in Atlantic County have an interesting shoplifters' program. They have to spend a Saturday morning at the county jail, tour the facilities and listen to stories about what life is like on the inside. If they get caught a second time, they go back for a longer stay.
But would a casino lodge a complaint against someone who took a couple extra packs of Sweet 'N Low from the buffet table or a bottle of shampoo from the maid's cart? I doubt it. They would risk alienating a customer who might have dropped thousands of dollars in the gaming halls. A lot of hotels handle towel theft by putting a sign in the bathroom indicating how much their account will be charged for each missing item.
I think most of us on this board, myself included, would not even think about shoplifting candy from a store or getting a sandwich at the convenience store and walking out without paying _ even if we were 100 percent positive we wouldn't get caught. But many of us do take something out of buffets, extra coupons, or keep our mouths shut when the BJ dealer overpays us. To call someone "dishonest" and "thief" over this is going way too far.
Please prosecute Kenny Boy Lay instead. 
Blessings and royals to all.
Elaine
Bill- Please chill out on this one. I would not call someone a
"thief" and "dishonest" for swiping some coupons from a maid's cart.
snip
Bill, I know you're a legal professional and
I'm not, but have you ever seen someone actually prosecuted for these
things?
snip
I've personally prosecuted shoplifters for taking things as small as a
pack of cigarettes; I'm sure that seems silly, but I'm speaking now
about municipal court where people also get fined for not wearing seat
belts, or for using profanity in public. If a merchant catches a thief
who has stolen even a very small item, they usually call the police and
want the person prosecuted. If the police spend the time taking the
report, and the merchant is willing to spend the time coming to court to
testify, then I'm sure not going to refuse to prosecute the case. I
···
Bill Velek <billvelek@alliancecable.net> wrote:Elaine Rose wrote:
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