§67.25. Organized retail theft

A. As used in this Section the following terms have the following meanings:

(1) "Retail establishment" means any business, whether a sole proprietorship, corporation, partnership, or otherwise, that holds or stores articles, products, commodities, items, or components for sale to the public or to other retail establishments.

(2) "Retail property" means any article, product, commodity, item, or component intended to be sold to the public or to other retail establishments.

(3) "Retail property fence" means any person who knowingly and intentionally procures, receives, or conceals stolen retail property.

(4) "Stolen retail property" means either:

(a) Retail property or merchandise credit, including but not limited to a gift card, that has been the subject of a theft or the product of a theft from a retail establishment.

(b) Retail property or merchandise credit, including but not limited to a gift card, that the offender procuring, receiving, or concealing that property knows or reasonably believes to be the subject of a theft or the product of a theft.

(5) "Value" means the price of the retail property as stated, posted, or advertised by the affected retail establishment, including applicable sales taxes.

B. Organized retail theft is the intentional procuring, receiving, or concealing of stolen retail property with the intent to sell, deliver, or distribute that property.

C. It shall be presumptive evidence that the owner or operator of any retail establishment has violated Subsection B of this Section when:

(1) On more than one occasion within any one-hundred-eighty-day period the offender has intentionally possessed, procured, received, or concealed stolen retail property; and

(2) The stolen retail property was possessed, procured, received, or concealed from or on behalf of any person who:

(a) Did not have a proper business license; or

(b) Did not pay sales or use taxes to the state or the appropriate local government subdivision in the jurisdiction where the possessing, procuring, receiving, or concealing took place for the transfer of the items to the owner or operator of the retail establishment; or

(c) Accepted a cash payment for the stolen retail property and did not provide the owner or operator of the possessing, procuring, receiving, or concealing retail establishment an invoice for the sale.

D.(1) Whoever commits the crime of organized retail theft when the aggregate amount of the misappropriation, taking, purchasing, possessing, procuring, receiving, or concealing in any one-hundred-eighty-day period amounts to a value of twenty-five thousand dollars or more shall be imprisoned at hard labor for not more than twenty years, or may be fined not more than fifty thousand dollars, or both.

(2) Whoever commits the crime of organized retail theft when the aggregate amount of the misappropriation, taking, purchasing, possessing, procuring, receiving, or concealing in any one-hundred-eighty-day period amounts to a value of five thousand dollars or more, but less than a value of twenty-five thousand dollars shall be imprisoned with or without hard labor for not more than ten years, or may be fined not more than ten thousand dollars, or both.

(3) Whoever commits the crime of organized retail theft when the aggregate amount of the misappropriation, taking, purchasing, possessing, procuring, receiving, or concealing in any one-hundred-eighty-day period amounts to a value of one thousand dollars or more but less than a value of five thousand dollars shall be imprisoned, with or without hard labor, for not more than five years, or may be fined not more than three thousand dollars, or both.

(4) When the misappropriation or taking amounts to less than a value of one thousand dollars, the offender shall be imprisoned for not more than six months, or may be fined not more than one thousand dollars, or both. If the offender in such cases has been convicted of theft two or more times previously, upon any subsequent conviction the offender shall be imprisoned, with or without hard labor, for not more than two years, or fined not more than two thousand dollars, or both.

E. Repealed by Acts 2017, No. 281, §3.

Acts 2007, No. 395, §1; Acts 2016, No. 328, §1, eff. June 2, 2016; Acts 2017, No. 281, §§1, 3.