Getting away with it seems to be a reward in itself for those addicted. Excitement generated from it creates for them an unforgettable rush.

For David*, it began when he was 15 years old with an X-box game from Wal- Mart. The first time Samantha* did it, she was 14 years old and stole a couple of bracelets and other accessories from Hot Topic. However, shoplifing these items was only the beginning of a bad habit and it wasn’t long before they were caught.

Both David and Samantha admitted that they felt guilty.

“I really wanted to take the game back, but I knew if I brought it back into Wal- Mart, I would get in trouble,” said David.

Samantha said she felt bad for stealing because she knew it would be a big risk to get caught.

David had only shoplifted twice before having an encounter with the police.

“I stole a small toy from Spencer’s Gifts,” said David. “I was caught right away. They made me wait in the store for about an hour and a half for the cop and my parents to get there.”

Fortunately, David’s only consequence was being grounded by his parents. His mistake was not put on his permanent record.

When Samantha was finally caught stealing from Hot Topic at the Irvine Spectrum, she also got off easy.

“I shoplifted a few bracelets, a beanie and a wallet,” said Samantha. “The alarm didn’t go off, but one of the employees went after us.”

The employee demanded that Samantha and her friend empty their bags and she was forced to call her dad to come pay for the merchandise. As a result of her decision she was banned from the store, indefinitely.

Both David and Samantha were lucky enough to walk away with the punishments they were given.

Brian Sawyer, director of security at the Brea Mall, discussed the more severe consequences of shoplifting.

“The repercussions of stealing could be arrest, loss of a job, and a criminal background,” said Sawyer.

According to shopliftingattorney. com, the first time a person is caught shoplifting, they could be due to pay a small fine, sentenced to one to three years of informal probation, or be charged with a misdemeanor.

With second or third offense, a person could be sentenced to a state prison for up to three years, spend a year in county jail, or be charged with a penalty.

“The punishment really depends on the store and how much merchandise was stolen,” said Sawyer. “They may stop the suspect and call their parents or they may call the cops. If what was stolen is
a high dollar amount, they may be faced with more severe consequences. Anything stolen over $400 will result in an arrest and is considered grand theft.”

Kelsey Gomez, senior, has been working at Justice for about a year and has become very familiar with the store’s shoplifting policy.

“If someone comes in and looks suspicious we are supposed to be really nice them and watch them,” said Gomez. “If they grab something and run out, we are supposed to run after them and draw as much attention to them as we can.”

Ashley Spadt, senior, who worked at Aeropostale during the holidays, was told what to look for in potential shoplifters.

Aeropostale wants their employees to look for people who were shopping with big empty bags. They also told Spadt that shoplifters usually hang out in front of the store, make a lot of eye contact with the employees and pretend to be on their phone or look busy.

Spadt actually caught a shoplifter.

“It was really awkward,” said Spadt. “When I approached the man, he just dropped his bag of stolen goods and ran out the store.”

Students who have jobs witness and understand the complications that shoplifting causes businesses.

“Shoplifting is really bad and it hurts the store,” said Gomez. “Every employee loses hours.”

According to shopliftingattorney.com, 25 percent of shoplifters are adolescents. Because of their decision, retailers lose over $20 billion a year.

There are many probable reasons for why teenagers choose to steal. Shopliftingprevention.org reported that the need to shoplift could be caused by peer pressure, boredom, angry or they just want nice things.

When asked why he stole the video game, David said, “I really wanted the game and I didn’t have the money for it.”

“I saw stuff that I liked so I stole it,” said Samantha, explaining why she shoplifted. “I just thought it was too much money for such a small item.”

At 14 years old, Jessica* began shoplifting when she stole some lip gloss and nail polish from Charlotte Russe.

Her reason for stealing the merchandise was that she was “hanging out with a lot of people who did stupid things for no reason.”

Jessica dropped her habit when she was caught shoplifting from Nordstrom. The employee that caught her took her to a back room where she saw a long bench with handcuffs attached to it.

Fortunately, like David and Samantha, she was able to walk away with just a phone call to her parents and a fine. However, the incident was enough for her to never do it again.

“Most of [my friends] shoplifted regularly and took much more expensive things,” said Jessica, explaining why she felt the need to steal. “They made it look so easy.”

Because she was going into high school, Jessica felt that she needed more things to fit in but didn’t have the money for it.

Neither David, Samantha nor Jessica are proud of what they’ve done.

“Karma will come back to haunt you,” said David. “It’s better not to do it so you won’t feel the guilt after.”

“I still know a lot of people that shoplift,” said Jessica. “I just want to go up to them and say ‘it’s stupid, don’t do it.’ The consequences are really not worth it.”

*Names have been changed for anonymity