1 Cent Difference In Stolen Xbox Case Earns NJ Man New Sentence

JERSEY CITY, NJ — One penny will make a major difference in the case of a stolen Xbox One.

A state appeals court last week ordered the resentencing of a man convicted of shoplifting for swiping the Xbox from a Kohl's store in Middlesex County. By including sales tax, prosecutors improperly valued the gaming console at more than $500, when the store listed it for $499.99.

The Dec. 21 court decision states that sales tax should be excluded when determining the value of stolen merchandise in shoplifting cases.

The $499.99 price tag makes a major difference in this case. In New Jersey, stealing merchandise worth $200-500 constitutes fourth-degree shoplifting, which carries penalties of up to 18 months' imprisonment. Third-degree shoplifting involves products valued higher than $500 but less than $75,000, which can land offenders up to five years in prison.

The case in question involves a man who stole a PlayStation 4 — priced at $299.99 — from Kohl's on Feb. 11, 2020. The defendant returned to the store 16 days later to steal the Xbox — priced at $499.99, with sales tax pushing the overall cost higher than $500 — according to court documents.

The defendant pleaded guilty to fourth-degree shoplifting and third-degree shoplifting. The trial court sentenced him June 16 to two concurrent 90-day jail terms and three years of probation.

On appeal, the public defender argued that the calculations of "full retail value" on stolen merchandise don't include sales tax. The appeals judges agreed, granting the defendant a resentencing on the third-degree offense involving the Xbox.

Prosecutors contended that the defendant already pleaded guilty, waiving his right to contest the charge. The state further argued that the man didn't receive an excessive sentence.

The appeals judges noted that the state crime of theft allows sales tax to get added to the value of stolen goods. However, New Jersey's shoplifting laws don't address sales tax.

Judges must rely on plain-language reading of the laws, the legal decision states. So if the State Legislature wanted sales tax included in shoplifting cases, they would've written that into the law, the ruling says.

And under New Jersey's "plain error" standard, the defendant's prior guilty plea can get corrected, the judges concluded.

"The sales tax on a particular piece of merchandise is not a part of a store's inventory, and it should not be considered in assessing the value of the merchandise stolen," the court opinion says. "Accordingly, we conclude there is no basis for the State to include sales tax when grading a defendant's shoplifting charge."