Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx announced in December that prosecutors in her office will not file felony charges against shoplifters unless the alleged thief has 10 felony convictions or is accused of stealing more than $1,000 in merchandise.
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| Velde | Chicago Police Dept |
So, if new allegations are true, Jacob Velde is probably kicking himself for stealing $1,011.80 worth of Gillette Fusion razors from a neighborhood Mariano’s.
A store security guard saw Velde stuff 27 packs of the premium razors into a shopping bag and then walk out the front door at 3030 North Broadway, police said.
Prosecutors, noting that the value of the allegedly stolen material exceeds Foxx’s $1,000 minimum by $11.80, charged the 23-year-old Lafayette, IN, resident with felony retail theft.
Any retail theft in excess of $500 is a felony in Illinois, but Foxx—concerned that the “wrong people” are becoming “justice involved”—refuses to pursue felonies unless her personal thresholds are met.
Velde, unable to post bail, has been jailed in lieu of $10,000 bond since February 12.
