Title 9, Crimes and Corrections

(a) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution for theft that the defendant: (1) was unaware that the property or service was that of another; or (2) acted in good faith under a claim of right to the property or service involved or that he had a claim of right to acquire or disp…

(a) A person is guilty of theft if he unlawfully takes or obtains or exercises unlawful control over, movable property of another with intent to deprive him thereof. (b) A person is guilty of theft if he unlawfully transfers immovable property of another or any interest therein w…

Punishment. (a) A person is guilty of a Crime Against the Community if that person knowingly takes, obtains or exercises unlawful control over government-owned, leased or borrowed property, or interferes with, obstructs, or takes action regarding government services in such a way…

(a) A person is guilty of theft if he intentionally obtains property of another by deception. A person deceives if he intentionally: (1) creates or reinforces a false impression, including false impressions as to law, value, intention or other state of mind; but deception as to a…

(a) A person is guilty of theft if he intentionally obtains property of another by threatening to: (1) inflict bodily injury on anyone or commit any other criminal offense; (2) accuse anyone of a criminal offense; (3) expose any secret tending to subject any person to hatred, con…

Mistake; Defined. A person who comes into control of property of another that he knows to have been lost, mislaid or delivered under a mistake as to the nature or amount of the property or the identity of the recipient is guilty of theft if, with intent to deprive the owner there…

(a) A person is guilty of theft if he intentionally receives, retains or disposes of movable property of another knowing that it has been stolen or believing that it has probably been stolen. It is a defense to a charge of violating this Section that the defendant received, retai…

(a) A person is guilty of theft if he knowingly tampers with, alters or by-passes meters for the purpose of obtaining electrical power, gas or water without paying compensation to the entity providing such services. A person commits theft if he knowingly diverts telephone service…

(a) A person is guilty of theft if he intentionally obtains services which he knows are available only for compensation, by deception or threat, or by false token or other means to avoid payment for the service. Services include labor, professional service, transportation, teleph…

(a) Unauthorized Interception or Receipt or Assistance in Intercepting or Receiving Service; Definition of >Assist in Intercepting or Receiving.’ (1) No person shall intercept or receive or assist in intercepting or receiving any communications service offered over a cable system…

A person who in the course of business obtains property upon agreement, or subject to a known legal obligation, to make specified payment or other disposition, whether from such property or its proceeds or from his own property to be reserved in equivalent amount, is guilty of th…

Defense. (a) A person commits a misdemeanor if he operates an automobile, aircraft, motorcycle, motorboat or other motor- propelled vehicle or vessel, or sailboat, without consent of the owner or other person authorized to give consent. (b) It is an affirmative defense to prosecu…

Agricultural Products. In any case where there is a conviction under the provisions of Chapter 43 of this Code and the property stolen by the defendant was livestock or agricultural product, as that term is used in § 43.10(d) of this Article, in addition to a fine or imprisonment…

Degree. It shall be theft punishable as a felony of the second degree, for any person: (a) To steal any dog or cat for the purpose of or with the intent of holding the same for ransom or a reward for the return thereof; or (b) To demand payment of a reward, ransom, or any thing o…

For the purposes of this Article, the words and phrases defined in §§ 43.82 through 43.92 have the meanings ascribed to them in those sections unless a contrary meaning is clear from the context. SOURCE: P.L. 15-116, eff. 3/28/80.

To conceal merchandise means that although there may be some notice of its presence, that merchandise is not visible through ordinary observation. SOURCE: P.L. 15-116, eff. 3/28/80.

Full Retail Value means the merchant’s stated or advertised price of the merchandise. SOURCE: P.L. 15-116, eff. 3/28/80.

Merchandise means any item of tangible personal property. SOURCE: P.L. 15-116, eff. 3/28/80.

Merchant means an owner or operator of any retail mercantile establishment or any agent, employee, lessee, consignee, officer, director, franchise or independent contractor of such owner or operator. SOURCE: P.L. 15-116, eff. 3/28/80.

Minor means a person who is less than eighteen (18) years of age, is unemancipated and resides with his parents or legal guardian. SOURCE: P.L. 15-116, eff. 3/28/80.

Person means any natural person or individual. SOURCE: P.L. 15-116, eff. 3/28/80.

Peace Officer has the meaning ascribed to that term in § 5.55 of the Criminal Procedure Code. SOURCE: P.L. 15-116, eff. 3/28/80.

Defined. Premises of a Retail Mercantile Establishment includes, but is not limited to, the retail mercantile establishment; any common use areas in shopping centers and all parking areas set aside by a merchant or on behalf of a merchant for the parking of vehicles for the conve…

Shopping Cart means those push carts of the type or types which are commonly provided by grocery stores, drug stores or other retail mercantile establishments for the use of the public in transporting commodities in stores and markets and, incidentally, from the stores to a place…

Under-Ring means to cause the cash register or other sales recording device to reflect less than the full retail value of the merchandise. SOURCE: P.L. 15-116, eff. 3/28/80.

A person is guilty of theft if he knowingly: (a) takes possession of, carries away, transfers or causes to be carried away or transferred, any merchandise displayed, held, stored or offered for sale in a retail mercantile establishment with the intention of retaining such merchan…

If any person: (a) conceals upon his person or among his belongings, unpurchased merchandise displayed, held, stored or offered for sale in a retail mercantile establishment; and (b) removes that merchandise beyond the last station for receiving payments for that merchandise in t…

Any merchant who has reasonable grounds to believe that a person has committed retail theft may detain such person, on the premises of a retail mercantile establishment, in a reasonable manner and for a reasonable length of time for all or any of the following purposes: (a) to re…

A detention, as permitted in this Article, does not constitute an arrest or unlawful restraint, as defined in § 22.35 of this Code, nor shall it render the merchant liable to the person so detained unless said detention is done unreasonably or without proper cause or justificatio…

If any part of this Article is declared invalid by a court, then the remainder of this Article shall still be in effect. SOURCE: Added as § 43.95 by P.L. 15-116, eff. 3/28/80. Renumbered by Compiler in accordance with P.L. 29-064:2 (Apr. 4, 2008).

Deactivation Devices. This Section defines and penalizes the distribution or possession of a detection shielding device or any tool or device designed to remove a theft detection device from merchandise prior to purchase for the intent to commit (or aid or abet) theft. A person w…

This Article criminalizes the use of a scanning device or re- encoder to capture encoded information from a magnetic strip from a credit, debit, or other payment card and then places it on a different credit, debit, or other payment card with the intent to defraud.

This Article shall be cited as the “Anti-Skimming Act.”

As used in this Article: (a) Scanning device means a scanner, reader or any other electronic device that is used to access, read, scan, obtain, memorize or store, temporarily or permanently, information encoded on the magnetic strip or stripe of a payment card. (b) Re-encoder mea…

(a) It is a felony of the third degree felony for a person to use: (1) A scanning device to access, read, obtain, memorize or store, temporarily or permanently, information encoded on the magnetic strip or stripe of a payment card without the permission of the authorized user of …