Devine, TX Criminal Defense Law Firms & Lawyers

"Possession of stolen property" is not itself an offense. One is charged with theft if they possess recently stolen property and offer no immediate logical explanation. Here is the code dealing with the level. Depends on the value: (e) Except as provided by Subsection (f), an offense under this section is: (1) a Class C misdemeanor if the value of the property stolen is less than: (A) $50; or (B) $20 and the defendant obtained the property by issuing or passing a check or similar sight order in a manner described by Section 31.06; (2) a Class B misdemeanor if: (A) the value of the property stolen is: (i) $50 or more but less than $500; or (ii) $20 or more but less than $500 and the defendant obtained the property by issuing or passing a check or similar sight order in a manner described by Section 31.06; or (B) the value of the property stolen is less than: (i) $50 and the defendant has previously been convicted of any grade of theft; or (ii) $20, the defendant has previously been convicted of any grade of theft, and the defendant obtained the property by issuing or passing a check or similar sight order in a manner described by Section 31.06; (3) a Class A misdemeanor if the value of the property stolen is $500 or more but less than $1,500; (4) a state jail felony if: (A) the value of the property stolen is $1,500 or more but less than $20,000, or the property is less than 10 head of cattle, horses, or exotic livestock or exotic fowl as defined by Section 142.001, Agriculture Code, or any part thereof under the value of $20,000, or less than 100 head of sheep, swine, or goats or any part thereof under the value of $20,000; (B) regardless of value, the property is stolen from the person of another or from a human corpse or grave; (C) the property stolen is a firearm, as defined by Section 46.01; (D) the value of the property stolen is less than $1,500 and the defendant has been previously convicted two or more times of any grade of theft; or (E) the property stolen is an official ballot or official carrier envelope for an election; (5) a felony of the third degree if the value of the property stolen is $20,000 or more but less than $100,000, or the property is: (A) 10 or more head of cattle, horses, or exotic livestock or exotic fowl as defined by Section 142.001, Agriculture Code, stolen during a single transaction and having an aggregate value of less than $100,000; or (B) 100 or more head of sheep, swine, or goats stolen during a single transaction and having an aggregate value of less than $100,000; (6) a felony of the second degree if the value of the property stolen is $100,000 or more but less than $200,000; or (7) a felony of the first degree if the value of the property stolen is $200,000 or more. (f) An offense described for purposes of punishment by Subsections (e)(1)-(6) is increased to the next higher category of offense if it is shown on the trial of the offense that: (1) the actor was a public servant at the time of the offense and the property appropriated came into the actor's custody, possession, or control by virtue of his status as a public servant; (2) the actor was in a contractual relationship with government at the time of the offense and the property appropriated came into the actor's custody, possession, or control by virtue of the contractual relationship; or (3) the owner of the property appropriated was at the time of the offense an elderly individual.

She could be kept on probation. This all depends on the probation officer and the district attorney. It also depends on the charges she is on probation for.

If the DA has accepted charges against her, there will be a case against her until there's not. What happens from here depends in large part upon the County in which the charges were filed. At some point the DA's office will contact you to ask about what happened. After that call they may indeed decide to drop the charges. However, if the case is in a bigger County, like Harris County, your statement may simply result in the case being transferred to another group, whose job is to prosecute cases in which the victime (in this case you) has recanted (said it didn't happen or refused to aid the DA's with prosecuting). IF that happens, my suggestion is that you guys hire a good defense attorney who can aggressively pursue a dismissal, or, in the event they refuse to dismiss it, can try the case to a jury and prove your wife's innocence. Your initial assessment is fairly accurate; they don't have a lot of evidence against your wife. But, that certainly hasn't stopped DA's from prosecuting cases in many other circumstances. So, hope for the best, but be prepared for the worst, is my advice.