A. Definitions:
CONCEAL MERCHANDISE: Although there may be some notice of its presence, that merchandise is not visible through ordinary observation.
FULL RETAIL VALUE: The merchant's stated or advertised price of the merchandise.
MERCHANDISE: Any type of tangible personal property.
MERCHANT: An owner or operator of any retail mercantile establishment, or any agent, employee, lessee, consignee, officer, director, franchisee or independent contractor of such owner or operator.
MINOR: A person who is less than nineteen (19) years of age, is unemancipated, and resides with his or her parents or legal guardian.
PEACE OFFICER: Any person who by virtue of his office or public employment is vested by law with a duty to maintain public order or to make arrests for offenses whether that duty extends to all offenses or is limited to specific offenses.
PERSON: Any natural person or individual.
PREMISES OF RETAIL MERCANTILE ESTABLISHMENT: Shall mean and include, but shall not be 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 convenience of the patrons of such retail mercantile establishment.
RETAIL MERCANTILE ESTABLISHMENT: Any place where merchandise is displayed.
SHOPPING CART: Those pushcarts of the type or types which are commonly provided by grocery 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 outside the store.
UNDER RING: To cause the cash register or other sales recording device to reflect less than the full retail value of the merchandise.
B. Offense Of Retail Theft: A person commits the offense of retail theft when he/she knowingly:
1. 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 merchandise or with the intention of depriving the merchant permanently of the possession, use or benefit of such merchandise without paying the full retail value of such merchandise; or
2. Alters, transfers or removes any label, price tag, marking indicia of value or any other markings which aid in determining value affixed to any merchandise displayed, held, stored or offered for sale, in a retail mercantile establishment and attempts to purchase such merchandise personally or in consort with another at less than the full retail value with the intention of depriving the merchant of the full retail value of such merchandise; or
3. Transfers any merchandise displayed, held, sorted or offered for sale in a retail mercantile establishment from the container in or on which such merchandise is displayed to any other container with the intention of depriving the merchant of the full retail value of such merchandise; or
4. Under rings with the intention of depriving the merchant of the full retail value of the merchandise; or
5. Removes a shopping cart from the premises of a retail mercantile establishment, without the consent of the merchant given at the time of such removal with the intention of depriving the merchant permanently of the possession, use or benefit of such cart.
C. Presumptions: If any person:
1. Conceals upon his/her person or among his/her belongings unpurchased merchandise displayed, held, sorted or offered for sale in a retail mercantile establishment; and
2. Removes that merchandise beyond the last known station for receiving payments for that merchandise in that retail mercantile establishment;
such person shall be presumed to have possessed, carried away or transferred such merchandise with the intention of retaining it or with the intention of depriving the merchant permanently of the possession, use or benefit of such merchandise without paying the full retail value of such merchandise.
D. Detention: Any merchant who has reasonable grounds to believe that a person has committed retail theft may detain such person on or off 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:
1. To request identification;
2. To verify such identification;
3. To make reasonable inquiry as to whether such person has in his or her possession unpurchased merchandise and, to make reasonable investigation of the ownership of such merchandise;
4. To inform a peace officer of the detention of the person and surrender that person to the custody of the peace officer;
5. In the case of a minor, to inform a peace officer, the parents, guardian or other private person interested in the welfare of that minor of this detention and to surrender custody of such minor to such person.
A merchant may make a detention as permitted herein off the premises of a retail mercantile establishment only if such a detention is pursuant to an immediate pursuit of such person.
E. Limitation: This section shall apply only to goods having a value or full retail value of one hundred fifty dollars ($150.00) or under and if the offender does not have any convictions for retail theft.
F. Penalty: Any person convicted of any violation of the provisions of this section, shall be fined not less than fifty dollars ($50.00) nor more than five hundred dollars ($500.00) for each offense. (Ord. 2002-35, 4-16-2002)