Baltimore Credit Card Theft Lawyer

Credit card theft is either the use of another’s credit card without permission or the use of the numbers or information without the card itself. An individual facing credit card theft charges should consult with an experienced attorney as this charge is very serious and carries significant incarceration consequences and fines, and can lead someone to have a criminal or even a felony record. A theft attorney in Baltimore would best know the ins and outs of the courtrooms in Baltimore, have relations with the prosecutors and judges, and know the procedure to effectively defend against a case like this and get the optimal result.

How This Offense Occurs

Stealing the credit card itself is not the crime that is considered when being prosecuted, but the use of the stolen credit card is the crime. It involves a credit card’s unauthorized use, considered when somebody uses a credit card unlawfully. If a person knowingly, intentionally, and without permission utilizes another’s credit card information to obtain goods or services, or use the number without the credit card, it is considered theft.

In Maryland, there are not many different types of theft charges. Primarily theft goes by value, depending on the amount of services or goods that were stolen or unlawfully obtained by the credit card, there could be more serious theft-related charges. For example, for someone who purchases $300 in groceries, there is a theft misdemeanor under $1,000, which carries up to 18 months incarceration, but if somebody purchases a TV for $1,900, that puts it in the felony range and carries up to 10 years incarceration. If the value is more than that, the potential incarceration goes even higher, therefore making it even more important a Baltimore theft attorney is contacted.

Credit Card Theft vs. Credit Card Fraud

There are varieties of credit card types of charges. Someone can use somebody else’s credit card information. With fraud in that context, someone can apply for a credit card using somebody else’s information. That is a fraud because they are acting and then signing documents as another to obtain the credit to be able to unlawfully obtain goods and services.

Building a Defense

There could be a multitude of defenses. Possibly, it could have been a mistake by using someone else’s card by accident, or if the credit card was given but then taken away at a later point. Mistakes happen with credit cards, as frequently people can have several of them. Someone could be in a restaurant and the waiter gives back the wrong credit card and they use it later on.

It is not enough that a person is in possession of property that was obtained to prove theft. Prosecutors will have to establish the person was the one that used it to obtain the goods and services, they did so knowingly and intentionally, and all of the elements have to be met to a very high degree in order for the prosecutor to have any hope of obtaining the verdict of guilty.

Contacting a Baltimore credit card theft attorney stands as the best chance to build your case, if you have been faced with theft charges. An experienced attorney will be able to fight for your rights and build the facts for the case in order to achieve the best outcome.