Torrance, Shoplifting at Sephora, $398, Judicial Diversion

Our client, age 42, was in Torrance from her home in Maryland for her father’s funeral.  Her thoughts were overcome with grief and sadness, as she deeply loved her dad.

She went over to the Del Amo Mall to walk around and just see the mall, other people and to get away.

She walked into the Sephora store and browsed around.  She had no money on her, but placed six items, mostly skin care products (anti-aging serum, lotions and creams) in her purse.  Loss prevention was watching her closely on closed-circuit television and then sent a representative out to personally observe her, as they expected her to leave the store without paying for the items.

As anticipated, our client did walk out of the store with the six items, valued at $398.  Loss prevention stopped her about 100 feet outside the store, which is much farther than they let most people walk after shoplifting.

The client was walked back into the Sephora store and taken to a small office in the rear of the store, where the stolen items were inventoried and loss prevention interviewed our client.  Our client explained why she did it: “I’m an idiot.”

The Torrance Police Department was called to the store and transported our client to the Torrance Police Department, where she booked and released. 

This was a harrowing experience for our client, who had no prior criminal history.  She was a nursing student, so she was particularly concerned about the effects of this arrest and a conviction for shoplifting on her future professional licensing.  She was also told by the nursing program that anyone on probation would not be able to work in a hospital as part of the final phase of the training.

Police asked her to sign a promise to appear in court about three months later, which our client did and was released.  She then attended to her father’s estate and did not think about the shoplifting case too much.

However, the day before the arraignment, she called Greg Hill & Associates and asked if Greg could represent her in court the following day.  Greg said he could.  The client then explained what had happened in her case and asked Greg whether she faced jail time for the crime.

Greg told her most likely no, as in his 24 and a half years of practice, he had only seen jail as punishment for a shoplifting case in Torrance on a second-time shoplifting case.  Greg further explained how such first-time cases are customarily handled in Torrance and how the Torrance City Prosecutor’s office approaches such cases.

Greg explained judicial diversion to the client and how, if she successfully completed the requirements, her case would be dismissed under Penal Code § 1385 or Penal Code § 1001.95, both of which then allowed her to seek an order to seal the record of her arrest and the court file.  Greg explained that this would probably be something the client would want to seek as a nursing student and future licensed nurse.

Greg further recommended that the client enroll in and take an online shoplifting prevention course, even though she had less than a day to do so, as the judge would be pleased she did so and the terms of judicial diversion might be more lenient for her.

The client retained Greg Hill & Associates and then completed the online shoplifting prevention program (from Third Millennium).  She sent Greg proof of having finished the program and he then took the certificate with him to court the following day.

Greg then appeared on the client’s behalf in the Torrance Superior Court and asked the judge assigned to the case to place our client on judicial diversion.  The judge agreed and suspended proceedings in the case for 90 days on the following terms: 1) that the client stay away from all Sephora stores for the 90 days; 2) that she pay a $100 court diversion fee; 3) that she perform 40 hours of community service; and 4) that she attend an 8-hour shoplifting prevention course with credit for the four-hour class she already did.

Greg then explained how the judge had placed her on judicial diversion and gave her the names of other online shoplifting prevention programs she could take (Logan Social Services, the National Association of Shoplifting Prevention and Tom Wilson Counseling). 

The client, however, was relieved that there was a way to have the case dismissed and the record of the case sealed.