Stealing and theft offences in Queensland

What stealing means in section 391

Stealing requires that you fraudulently take or convert something capable of being stolen, without the consent of the owner, and with one of the intentions listed in section 391(2). The most common is an intent to permanently deprive the owner of the thing.

The word fraudulently is doing the heavy lifting. Taking something you honestly believe you are entitled to is not stealing, because section 22(2) preserves an honest claim of right without intention to defraud. Walking out of a shop with an item you genuinely forgot was in the bottom of a trolley is not stealing either, because the intent is missing.

Shoplifting, and why it is rarely simple

Most shoplifting is charged as stealing under section 398 and heard summarily. On a first charge involving a small amount, with an early plea and no history, the usual outcome is a fine or a good behaviour bond, frequently with no conviction recorded.

What complicates it is what else gets charged. Removing or defeating a security tag can be charged as wilful damage under section 469. Swapping price labels is fraud under section 408C, not stealing. Being stopped in the car park with unpaid goods still raises the question of whether the taking was complete, and it usually was, because the offence is complete on the taking with the necessary intent, not at the door.

Retailers on the Gold Coast almost always have usable CCTV and a loss prevention officer statement. Where the footage does not show concealment, and does not show you passing the last point of sale, the case is weaker than the QP9 suggests.

Related offences you may be charged with instead

• Unlawful use of a motor vehicle, section 408A. Using someone else vehicle without consent, maximum 7 years, or 12 years where it is used in connection with another indictable offence or is damaged, destroyed or used with violence. It does not require an intention to permanently deprive, which is why joyriding is charged this way.
• Receiving tainted property, section 433. Receiving property obtained by way of an indictable offence, knowing it was so obtained. Maximum 7 years, or 14 years where the property was obtained by a crime.
• Unlawful possession of suspected stolen property, section 16 of the Summary Offences Act 2005 (Qld). A summary offence, and a common fallback charge when police cannot prove where the goods came from.
• Fraud, section 408C. Charged where you obtained the property by deception or already lawfully held it. See the fraud page.

Getting the best available outcome

For most first time stealing charges the realistic goal is no conviction recorded. That argument under section 12 of the Penalties and Sentences Act 1992 (Qld) is stronger where you can show the property was returned or paid for, that you sought help for the underlying cause, and that a conviction would cost you employment, a visa or a licence.

Where there is an underlying issue, address it before the sentence date. Stealing driven by a gambling problem, an eating disorder, untreated depression or a drug dependency is common, and a court responds far better to a report showing treatment already underway than to an assurance that it will start.

Where the charge involves a value of $30,000 or more and you do not plead guilty, section 552BB takes the matter out of the Magistrates Court and into the District Court.