Florida theft charges turn on a dollar figure, a property type, and a prior record. The same physical act can be a second-degree misdemeanor or a felony depending on which line of Florida Statute 812.014 the alleged value falls into.
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Or call (813) 588-6602Theft of property not otherwise specified is petit theft of the second degree, a misdemeanor of the second degree. Where the property is valued at $100 or more but less than $750, the offense becomes petit theft of the first degree, a misdemeanor of the first degree. Grand theft of the third degree, a felony of the third degree, begins at $750 and runs to $5,000, with further bands at $5,000 to $10,000 and $10,000 to $20,000. Grand theft of the first degree, a felony of the first degree, applies where the property is valued at $100,000 or more, where cargo valued at $50,000 or more has entered the stream of commerce, or where the offender used a motor vehicle as an instrumentality other than merely as a getaway vehicle and damaged real property, or caused damage to property of another exceeding $1,000.
Under 812.014(3)(b), a person who commits petit theft with one prior theft conviction commits a misdemeanor of the first degree. Under 812.014(3)(c), two or more prior theft convictions make a petit theft a felony of the third degree. The statute says "any theft," without requiring that the prior offense be similar in kind or value. That is the mechanism by which a low-value allegation reaches a felony docket, and it is why the accuracy of an alleged prior record is worth checking against certified dispositions rather than a summary.
Florida Statute 812.015 governs retail and farm theft and supplies its own definitions, including retail theft, merchandise, and antishoplifting or inventory control device. Subsection (8) makes retail theft a felony of the third degree where a person coordinates the activities of one or more individuals in committing the offense, which may occur through multiple acts, and the amount of each individual theft is aggregated within a 120-day period to a value of $750 or more. The same subsection reaches a conspiracy to commit retail theft with intent to sell the property, using the same aggregation window. The statute also provides that a second or subsequent petit theft from a merchant is punished under 812.014(3) and carries a fine of not less than $50 and not more than $1,000, or public service instead of the fine. Florida Statute 812.0155 permits driver license suspension as an alternative sentence for a person under 18.
The Hillsborough County Clerk of the Circuit Court describes a sequence in which the jail forwards initial paperwork, the Clerk prepares the official court file, and the State Attorney then decides whether to file formal charges. The Clerk states that notice of an arraignment date is mailed to the address given at arrest, that a bail bond agent is notified where applicable, and that the department cannot change a court date. Forms are published for designating a current mailing and e-mail address. Petit theft appears among the examples of matters handled by the Clerk's county criminal department, where an arraignment date may instead appear on a notice to appear.
Because value is an element, the documents supporting it are evidence: the arrest affidavit with the alleged value and subsection, any loss prevention report, price documentation, the property receipt, and written video preservation requests.
This page offers general information about Florida theft statutes and local filing procedure. It is not legal advice and assesses no allegation. Anyone charged with theft or retail theft should consult a licensed Florida attorney about the exact subsection charged.
Theft and Shoplifting Charges in Florida in Tampa. Call (813) 588-6602 and a Tampa lawyer reviews the claim and the deadline that applies. Nothing is signed on that call.
Call (813) 588-6602Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.130 requires that every arrested person not already released in a lawful manner be taken before a judicial officer within 24 hours of arrest, in person or by electronic audiovisual device at the court's discretion. At that hearing the judge must state the charge, provide a copy of the complaint, and advise the person of the right to remain silent and the right to counsel. Rule 3.133 sets a separate 48-hour limit for a nonadversary probable cause determination when the defendant is in custody.
Why it matters: In Hillsborough County that hearing is normally run by video link from the county jail, and release conditions are addressed at it. Rule 3.130(c)(2) also requires the judge to allow a defendant who is hiring counsel reasonable time to send for that lawyer and, on request, to have an officer carry a message to a named lawyer inside the county at no cost. That makes the first day after an arrest the point at which counsel matters most.
Source: flcourts.gov
Administrative Order S-2025-063 of the Thirteenth Judicial Circuit adopts the statewide uniform bond schedule for Hillsborough County without change, effective January 1 through December 31, 2026. The order states the schedule applies only to the booking officer and does not bind a judge. It also excludes a long list of arrests: capital, life, first- and second-degree felonies, homicide, felony battery, domestic battery by strangulation, and domestic violence under Florida Statutes 741.28. The list continues with stalking, robbery, burglary, carjacking, kidnapping, trafficking in a controlled substance, and violation of a protective injunction. It reaches anyone on pretrial release, probation or community control at the time of a felony arrest, and anyone arrested three or more times in the preceding six months.
Why it matters: It decides whether anyone can be bonded out at the jail counter or has to wait for a judge. For every excluded charge there is no pre-first-appearance release, and the judge then makes an individualized determination under Florida Statutes 903.011(6) and 903.046 and Rule 3.131. Prior supervision status and recent arrest history change the answer even when the charge itself is minor.
Source: fljud13.org
The Hillsborough County Clerk of Court states that after a felony arrest the county jail sends the initial paperwork to the Clerk's felony department. That department prepares the official court file, including the original arrest document and any release forms, and forwards it to the Office of the State Attorney. The State Attorney then determines whether to file formal charges. Once charges are filed with the Clerk, the defendant is notified by mail of an arraignment date, sent to the address provided at the time of arrest, and the bail bond agent is also notified if the defendant bonded out. The felony department cannot change a court date once notice has gone out.
Why it matters: An arrest is not a filed charge, and the gap between them is where people assume a case has gone away. The notice that resumes it goes to whatever address was recorded at booking, so anyone who moved, or who gave a temporary address, can miss a court date they never saw. Missing it does not pause the case.
Source: hillsclerk.com
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