Q: My 16YO daughter stole from a makeup store, no cops, banned from the store. Now I have a bill in the mail from a lawyer?
They took her to the back office, Scottdale PD was not involved, they kept all times since they were not open but claim "losses". Now I have a bill for $ 312 for a civil claim. ARS 12-661/ 12-691 / 12-694 and 13-1805.
What are my options?
A:
Dad of teenage girls here.
If there was a pending criminal court case, I have advised parents pay the civil claim then successfully argue to the prosecutor the criminal case should be dismissed due to the "victim" agreeing to a misdemeanor compromise.
However, your daughter has no open criminal case, so I would advise you not to pay the $312. Ignore the letter. The store could file a civil lawsuit against you if you don't pay but that would be highly unlikely given these facts. The store will likely take no further action if you just ignore the letter.
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