THEFT AND ROBBERY
Theft is a crime against property, whereas robbery is a crime against a person. Robbery encompasses a theft (or attempted theft) plus force or intimidation. It is the use or theft of force that makes robbery, in most cases, the more serious crime. Theft is called larceny in some states—is a broad term that can cover a wide variety of criminal offenses. For example, shoplifting and stealing a motorcycle are both forms of theft. In many states, theft or larceny can be either a felony or a misdemeanor, depending on the type of stolen property or its value. Misdemeanor thefts might be referred to as petty or pet it theft and involve stolen property valued under $1,000 or $2,000. A person convicted of petty theft might face up to a year in jail or spend time on probation. Felony thefts—also called grand theft—involve any amount over the misdemeanor threshold. Grand theft can involve a wide range of sentences, from a couple of years to a decade or more in prison. States vary considerably when it comes to theft penalties. Robbery refers to stealing or attempting to stole something from a victim by force or intimidation. The typical elements of robbery are someone taking money or property:
- with the intent to keep the property permanently
- without the property owner's consent,
- by the use of force or intimidation
- from or in the presence of the victim.
A robbery could involve a bank holdup, carjacking, or even a purse snatching. Robbery and theft differ in several respects, but the key difference that makes robbery the more serious offense is the potential for physical harm to a victim.
Person vs. property offense. As noted above, theft is a crime against property, whereas robbery is a crime against a person. This factor alone makes robbery more serious than theft.
Violent vs. nonviolent offense. Both theft and robbery involve taking or attempting to take money or property without permission. But theft doesn't involve violence, whereas the crime of robbery requires force or the threat of force.
Victim presence. Robbery, unlike theft, entails taking property directly from or in the presence of a person, which places the victim in the path of direct harm.
Penalties. The penalties for theft and robbery reflect the potential for physical harm and violence to a victim. Robberies generally start as felonies, and a defendant convicted of robbery will likely see prison time. Thefts, on the other hand, can result in misdemeanor penalties. Even for felony theft, a person may potentially receive probation and spend little time behind bars.
In reports about crimes where money or property are taken, “theft”, “burglary” and “robbery” are terms often used interchangeably. There are, however, very clear differences between these offenses. Put very simply, someone is guilty of robbery if he steals from a person using force or makes them think force will be used. Theft means taking someone’s property, but does not involve the use of force. Burglary means illegally entering a property in order to steal property from it. Below is a summary of each offense and what it involves.
Theft
In legislation, “a person is guilty of theft if he dishonestly appropriates property belonging to another with the intention of permanently depriving the other of it.” This could mean someone stole from a shop, picking someone’s pocket, stealing a bicycle or car, an employee stealing from their workplace or a guest stealing something from a house during a party. The maximum sentence for theft is seven years.
Robbery
The definition as set out in legislation is as follows: “A person is guilty of robbery if he steals, and immediately before or at the time of doing so, and in order to do so, he uses force on any person or puts or seeks to put any person of being then and there subjected to force”. This can include a street mugging or robbery of a shop, business or security vehicle. Due to the violent nature of robbery, it is treated as being more serious than theft and the maximum sentence is life. Robbery is a more serious offense if compared to theft. It is an offense against a person, and it includes the element of violence. In robbery, there is always the presence of victim. But in theft, there is no victim as such, it is only the owner of the stolen property who suffers a wrongful loss of that property.
Save home from theft
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