Cranford New Jersey Criminal Defense Blog

Shopping in Cranford often seems to bring out many of our most primitive instincts. Chief among these is the desire to "hunt" for the best deals. Oftentimes, the best retail deals might come through your own personal connections. If, for example, you have a friend or acquaintance that works for a retailer, you might be able to leverage that relationship to save money off a purchase. Unfortunately, as some of those with whom we here at The Law Offices of Anthony N. Palumbo have worked with can attest to, some of these supposed deals can be too good to be true. 

Section 20-11 of the New Jersey Code of Criminal Justice lists under-ringing as an element of shoplifting. In this particular context, "under-ringing" is defined as "to cause the cash register or other sale recording device to reflect less than the full retail value of the merchandise." It may be well known that a sales associate has the power to override a listed sales price when completing a transaction. The question is when is it lawful for them to do so? 

When motorists are pulled over on suspicion of drinking and driving, law enforcement officers may ask them to take a breath test. Roadside breath test devices are used to measure a driver’s blood alcohol content level and determine whether it is over the legal limit of 0.08. The problem stems from the fact that many roadside breath test devices yield inaccurate results when compared to the blood alcohol level readings obtained from an actual blood sample. According to the State University of New York at Potsdam, breath test results obtained from a roadside device may vary by at least 15 percent from the readings of an actual blood test. Furthermore, at least one in four people tested will have inflated breath test readings. This could lead to a wrongful DUI arrest and potentially false conviction.

There are several factors that contribute to the inaccurate readings obtained through a breath test device. Some of the following can influence readings and cause them to be higher than normal:

•          The relative humidity and temperature of the air
•          Cigarette smoke, gas fumes and pollution
•          Electrical interference from cellphones or officers’ radios
•          Residual food, drink, blood or vomit in a person’s mouth

Finding out that your child is shoplifting can be very disheartening. Unfortunately, this is a common behavior in many children and it’s up to the parents to break the habit before severe consequences occur. KidsHealth.org offers the following advice on how you can address the topic of stealing with your child.

How you react largely depends on the age of your child. Very young children may not understand stealing is wrong. In this case, parents should clearly state the consequences of stealing and have the child return the item or apologize for taking it. It’s also good to emphasize how stealing hurts people, especially when a child takes a personal item from a friend or family member.

Certainly, some shoplifting happens for purely financial reasons. A child who does not have enough money to buy a toy decides to steal it from the store. An adult who needs to put food on the table feels they have no choice but to turn to theft. It does happen.

However, experts note that things like poverty or greed do not really drive most people to steal. Shoplifting is about something else entirely. It's a psychological issue.