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Searching 2023-2024 Session

The Vermont Statutes Online

The Vermont Statutes Online have been updated to include the actions of the 2023 session of the General Assembly.

NOTE: The Vermont Statutes Online is an unofficial copy of the Vermont Statutes Annotated that is provided as a convenience.

Title 13 : Crimes and Criminal Procedure

Chapter 057 : Larceny and Embezzlement

Subchapter 004 : Shoplifting

(Cite as: 13 V.S.A. § 2575)
  • § 2575. Offense of retail theft

    A person commits the offense of retail theft when the person, with intent of depriving a merchant wrongfully of the lawful possession of merchandise, money, or credit:

    (1) takes and carries away or causes to be taken and carried away or aids and abets the carrying away of, any merchandise from a retail mercantile establishment without paying the retail value of the merchandise; or

    (2) alters, transfers, or removes or causes to be altered, transferred, or removed or aids and abets the alteration, transfer, or removal of any label, price tag, indicia of value, or any other markings affixed to any merchandise in a retail mercantile establishment and purchases the merchandise for less than its retail value; or

    (3) transfers or causes to be transferred or aids and abets in the transfer of any merchandise in a retail mercantile establishment from one container or location to another container or location and purchases the merchandise for less than its retail value; or

    (4) alters, transfers, counterfeits, or reproduces a retail sales receipt or a Universal Product Code (UPC) label or possesses an altered, counterfeit, or reproduced retail sales receipt or UPC label; or

    (5) possesses 15 or more altered, counterfeit, or reproduced retail sales receipts or UPC labels or possesses a device that is designed to alter, counterfeit, or reproduce retail sales receipts or UPC labels; or

    (6) manufactures, sells, offers for sale, distributes, or knowingly possesses a laminated or coated bag intended to shield merchandise from detection by an electronic or magnetic theft detector; or

    (7) manufactures, sells, offers for sale, distributes, or knowingly possesses any tool or device designed to allow or capable of allowing the deactivation or removal from any merchandise of any theft detection device without the permission of the merchant or the person owning or lawfully holding the merchandise. (Added 1977, No. 227 (Adj. Sess.), § 1; amended 2005, No. 157 (Adj. Sess.), § 1.)