Idaho Theft Crimes - Willful Concealment

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Idaho Willful Concealment

Willful Concealment is a lesser theft offense similar to Petty Theft. In Idaho, Willful Concealment is defined as:

"knowingly and willingly taking or concealing goods or property from a retail establishment with the intent to not pay for them, while still upon the premises of such store or merchant."*

*This is the primary difference between Willful Concealment and Petty Theft - "while still upon the premises..."

Anyone convicted of Willful Concealment "shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by a fine of not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000) or by imprisonment in the county jail for not more than six (6) months, or by both such fine and imprisonment."

For more information on the law and penalties, see: Idaho Code § 18-4626

However, the punishment assigned by the court is just the beginning...

A Willful Concealment conviction can have serious short and long term consequences beyond those punishments ordered by the court, potentially affecting your employment, personal relationships, and reputation.

Theft is considered a "crime of moral turpitude" and can have a severe impact on many areas of your life. 

A conviction can be particularly harmful in terms of:

• Maintaining current employment,
• Gaining future employment,
• State licensing,
• Obtaining professional licenses and certifications,
• Federal Student Loans for education,
• and other benefits.

The conviction will appear on any background checks and employers tend to pass on applicants with theft records, fearing them to be dishonest and having the potential to steal from their companies.

Fight Your Idaho Willful Concealment Theft Charge

Do not let a theft conviction follow you around for the rest of your life. Let us fight to keep you out of jail and keep a theft conviction off your record.

An experienced Idaho theft crimes attorney can fight the charge and keep it off your record. Every theft case is different and William Young scrutinizes the facts of every case to see if the prosecutor really has enough evidence to prove you guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. If not, we can challenge the evidence in court, get the case dropped, or win the case at trial.

Even if the evidence is overwhelming, we can fight to try and get the charge reduced or limit the punishment to community service and/or probation.