99TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2015 and 2016
HB2496

 

Introduced 2/18/2015, by Rep. Will Guzzardi

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
720 ILCS 5/16-27

    Amends the Criminal Code of 2012. Changes the additional amount of damages that may be recovered by the merchant from an amount not less than $100 nor more than $1,000 to an amount equal to the lesser of $500 or 3 times the full retail value of the merchandise. Provides that a merchant may recover civil damages for retail theft by bringing suit in a circuit court or by executing a settlement agreement. Specifies form of settlement agreement. Provides that the settlement agreement shall include a statement that nothing in the agreement shall constitute an admission of guilt for purposes of criminal law and that if the agreement is signed and payment is made in full within 60 days, no police report or criminal complaint will be filed by the merchant relative to the incident. Provides that nothing in the agreement can or will bar the State from instituting the criminal prosecutions as it deems necessary. Effective immediately.


LRB099 06775 RLC 27982 b

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

HB2496LRB099 06775 RLC 27982 b

1    AN ACT concerning criminal law.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Criminal Code of 2012 is amended by changing
5Section 16-27 as follows:
 
6    (720 ILCS 5/16-27)
7    Sec. 16-27. Civil liability.
8    (a) A person who commits the offense of retail theft as
9defined in subdivision (a)(1), (a)(2), (a)(3), or (a)(8) of
10Section 16-25 shall be civilly liable to the merchant of the
11merchandise in an amount consisting of:
12        (i) actual damages equal to the full retail value of
13    the merchandise; plus
14        (ii) an amount equal to the lesser of $500 or 3 times
15    the full retail value of the merchandise not less than $100
16    nor more than $1,000; plus
17        (iii) attorney's fees and court costs.
18    (b) If a minor commits the offense of retail theft, the
19parents or guardian of the minor shall be civilly liable as
20provided in this Section; however, a guardian appointed
21pursuant to the Juvenile Court Act of 1987 shall not be liable
22under this Section. Total recovery under this Section shall not
23exceed the maximum recovery permitted under Section 5 of the

 

 

HB2496- 2 -LRB099 06775 RLC 27982 b

1Parental Responsibility Law. For the purposes of this Section,
2"minor" means a person who is less than 19 years of age, is
3unemancipated, and resides with his or her parent or parents or
4legal guardian.
5    (c) A conviction or a plea of guilty to the offense of
6retail theft is not a prerequisite to the bringing of a civil
7suit under this Section.
8    (d) Judgments arising under this Section may be assigned.
9    (e) A merchant may recover civil damages for retail theft
10by bringing suit in a circuit court or by executing a
11settlement agreement in the form set out in subsection (f) of
12this Section.
13    (f) A merchant and a person accused of retail theft by the
14merchant may agree to execute a civil settlement agreement for
15civil damages in an amount equal to the lesser of $500 or 3
16times the full retail value of the merchandise, plus the return
17of the merchandise or the replacement value of the merchandise
18within 60 days of the date the agreement is signed. The form of
19the settlement agreement shall be as follows:
 
20    Settlement of Claim for Taking Merchandise Without Payment
 
21    The undersigned, .............. (Party #1), having failed
22    to pay for certain merchandise, more specifically
23    described as follows .............., hereby agrees to pay,
24    within 60 days of the date this agreement is signed, civil

 

 

HB2496- 3 -LRB099 06775 RLC 27982 b

1    damages of .............. (an amount equal to the lesser of
2    $500 or 3 times the full retail value of the merchandise),
3    plus the merchandise or the replacement value of the
4    merchandise. The parties agree that this payment shall
5    constitute full and complete payment of damages to the
6    following merchant .............. The following merchant
7    .............. agrees to waive any and all claims it may
8    have for civil damages.
 
9    Nothing in this agreement shall constitute an admission of
10    guilt for purposes of criminal law. If this agreement is
11    signed and payment is made in full within 60 days, no
12    police report or criminal complaint will be filed by the
13    merchant relative to this incident. However, nothing in
14    this agreement can or will bar the State of Illinois from
15    instituting the criminal prosecutions as it deems
16    necessary.
 
17
...............
18
Party #1

 
19
...............
20
Party #2 for the following merchant:

 
21
...............
22(Source: P.A. 97-597, eff. 1-1-12.)
 

 

 

HB2496- 4 -LRB099 06775 RLC 27982 b

1    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
2becoming law.