102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2021 and 2022
HB4275

 

Introduced 1/5/2022, by Rep. Jim Durkin - Dan Brady - Tom Demmer - Dave Severin - Patrick Windhorst, et al.

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
720 ILCS 5/16-29 new
720 ILCS 5/16-29.5 new

    Amends the Criminal Code of 2012. Creates the offense of organized retail theft. Provides that a person commits the offense when he or she does any of the following: (1) acts in concert with one or more persons to steal merchandise from one or more merchant's premises with the intent to deprive the merchant permanently of the possession, use or benefit of the merchandise without paying the full retail value of the merchandise or to sell, exchange, or return the merchandise for value; (2) acts in concert with 2 or more persons to receive, purchase, or possess merchandise described in item (1), knowing or believing it to have been stolen; (3) acts as an agent of another individual or group of individuals to steal merchandise from one or more merchant's premises as part of an organized plan to commit theft; or (4) recruits, coordinates, organizes, supervises, directs, manages, or finances another to undertake any of the acts described in item (1) or (2) or any other statute defining theft of merchandise. Provides penalties and establishes venue for organized retail theft.


LRB102 22461 RLC 31800 b

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

HB4275LRB102 22461 RLC 31800 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 adding
5Sections 16-29 and 16-29.5 as follows:
 
6    (720 ILCS 5/16-29 new)
7    Sec. 16-29. Organized retail theft.
8    (a) A person commits organized retail theft when he or she
9does any of the following:
10        (1) acts in concert with one or more persons to steal
11    merchandise from one or more merchant's premises with the
12    intent to deprive the merchant permanently of the
13    possession, use, or benefit of the merchandise without
14    paying the full retail value of the merchandise or to
15    sell, exchange, or return the merchandise for value;
16        (2) acts in concert with 2 or more persons to receive,
17    purchase, or possess merchandise described in paragraph
18    (1), knowing or believing it to have been stolen;
19        (3) acts as an agent of another individual or group of
20    individuals to steal merchandise from one or more
21    merchant's premises as part of an organized plan to commit
22    theft; or
23        (4) recruits, coordinates, organizes, supervises,

 

 

HB4275- 2 -LRB102 22461 RLC 31800 b

1    directs, manages, or finances another to undertake any of
2    the acts described in paragraph (1) or (2) or any other
3    statute defining theft of merchandise.
4    (b) Sentence. Organized retail theft is punishable as
5follows:
6        (1) A violation of this Section, the full retail value
7    which does not exceed $300 for the property is a Class 3
8    felony. If the defendant used or possessed an artifice,
9    instrument, container, device, or other article capable of
10    facilitating the removal of merchandise from a retail
11    establishment without paying the purchase price and use of
12    the artifice, instrument, container, device, or other
13    article is part of an organized plan to commit theft, a
14    violation is a Class 2 felony.
15        (2) A violation of this Section, the full retail value
16    which exceeds $300 is a Class 2 felony for the first
17    offense and a Class 1 felony for a second or subsequent
18    offense. If the defendant used or possessed an artifice,
19    instrument, container, device, or other article capable of
20    facilitating the removal of merchandise from a retail
21    establishment without paying the purchase price and use of
22    the artifice, instrument, container, device, or other
23    article is part of an organized plan to commit theft a
24    violation is a Class 2 felony.
25        (3) A person who has been convicted of organized
26    retail theft, the full retail value of which does not

 

 

HB4275- 3 -LRB102 22461 RLC 31800 b

1    exceed $300 and who has been previously convicted of any
2    type of theft, robbery, armed robbery, burglary,
3    residential burglary, possession of burglary tools, home
4    invasion, unlawful use of a credit card, or forgery is
5    guilty of a Class 2 felony.
6        (4) A person who has been convicted of organized
7    retail theft, the full retail value of which exceeds $300
8    and who has been previously convicted of any type of
9    theft, robbery, armed robbery, burglary, residential
10    burglary, possession of burglary tools, home invasion,
11    unlawful use of a credit card, or forgery is guilty of a
12    Class 1 felony.
13    (c) For the purpose of determining whether the defendant
14acted in concert with another person or persons in any
15proceeding, the trier of fact may consider any competent
16evidence, including, but not limited to, any of the following:
17        (1) the defendant has previously acted in concert with
18    another person or persons in committing acts constituting
19    theft, or any related offense, including any conduct that
20    occurred in counties other than the county of the offense
21    being tried, if relevant to demonstrate a fact other than
22    the defendant's disposition to commit the act; or
23        (2) the defendant used or possessed an artifice,
24    instrument, container, device, or other article capable of
25    facilitating the removal of merchandise from a retail
26    establishment without paying the purchase price, and use

 

 

HB4275- 4 -LRB102 22461 RLC 31800 b

1    of the artifice, instrument, container, device, or other
2    article is part of an organized plan to commit theft.
3    (d) In a prosecution under this Section, the State's
4Attorney is not required to charge any other co-participant of
5the organized retail theft.
 
6    (720 ILCS 5/16-29.5 new)
7    Sec. 16-29.5. Venue.
8    (a) A criminal action for organized retail theft, as
9defined in subsection (a) of Section 16-29, may be tried in:
10        (1) the county where an offense involving the theft or
11    receipt of the stolen merchandise occurred;
12        (2) the county in which the merchandise was recovered;
13    or
14        (3) the county where any act was done by the defendant
15    in instigating, procuring, promoting, or aiding in the
16    commission of a theft offense or a violation of organized
17    retail theft or in abetting the parties concerned in the
18    offense.
19    (b) If multiple offenses or violations of organized retail
20theft, either all involving the same defendant or defendants
21and the same merchandise, or all involving the same defendant
22or defendants and the same scheme or substantially similar
23activity, occur in multiple counties, then any of those
24counties are a proper venue to try all of the offenses. All
25associated offenses connected together in their commission to

 

 

HB4275- 5 -LRB102 22461 RLC 31800 b

1the underlying theft offenses or violations of organized
2retail theft may be tried in any of those counties.