What Is the Legal Definition of Embezzlement and What Are the Consequences?

Posted By The Law Offices of Jeffrey C. Grass || 4-May-2012

In recent years, white collar crimes have been more widely prosecuted, with perpetrators sometimes receiving severe penalties. To learn more about embezzlement from a criminal defense attorney, keep reading:

Embezzlement
Embezzlement is theft from an employer by an employee who has legal access to the property in question but does not have legal ownership. This can come in many forms, including falsifying records to underestimate a business’s income, taking money from a cash register, paying a salary to a phantom employee or phantom merchant, or theft of goods from an employer. To be convicted of embezzlement, a suspect must have intended to defraud the owner of the property and not simply have committed an error. Embezzlement does not have a monetary or value threshold; therefore, taking any amount of money from an employer can be charged as embezzlement.

Consequences
Though theft of any amount counts as embezzlement, penalties for the offense vary based on the value of the items or the amount of money taken. In Texas, penalties are structured as follows:

• Less than $50: Fine up to $500
• $50 to $500: Fine up to $2000 and/or 180 days in jail
• $500 to $1,500: Fine up to $4000 and/or one year in jail
• $1,500 to $20,000: State jail felony, carrying up to two years in state jail
• $20,000 to $100,000: Third degree felony; two- to 10-year prison term
• $100,000 to $200,000: Second degree felony; up to 20 years in prison
• Over $200,000: First degree felony; five to 99 years in prison

Anyone considered a public servant will be subject to an enhancement of the sentence and will receive the next level of penalty.

If you have been accused of embezzlement, you need an experienced criminal defense attorney on your side. Prosecutors take these charges very seriously and will work to impose the maximum penalty on anyone convicted of embezzlement. To discuss your defense, call the Law Offices of Jeffrey C. Grass at today, and schedule a free initial consultation.