What Does It Mean to Deprive Someone of Their Property?
Experienced criminal defense lawyers in Baltimore, Attorney Eric T. Kirk MD are acutely aware the State must prove that an alleged thief intended to deprive the owner of his or her property. The law defines deprivation as occurring in several circumstances:
- the thief withholds the property permanently;
- the thief intends to return the property only upon payment of a reward, or
- the thief uses the property in such a way as the owner is unlikely to ever get it back.
The methods of proof here are not exclusive. Showing the appropriate intent is often one of most difficult burdens for the State. Unless there is some form of verbal or written expression of a plan or design, what a person intends must necessarily be devined from their conduct and actions.