Gillsville Woman Arrested for Stealing from Company

Hall County Courthouse

Gillsville, Ga. - Hall County authorities arrested a woman who has been accused of stealing upwards of $170,000 from her employer. She held an accounting role with the company for years and allegedly used a company credit card to pay for her own personal expenses from January to October.

As a Georgia Criminal Defense Lawyer, I will focus on a particular type of theft that the woman has been accused of committing - theft by conversion in Georgia.

Theft by Conversion in Georgia

Theft by Conversion in Georgia is defined in the Georgia Code in O.C.G.A. § 16-8-4 as:

A person commits the crime of theft by conversion when, having lawfully obtained funds or other property of another including, but not limited to, leased or rented personal property, under an agreement or other known legal obligation to make a specified application of such funds or a specific disposition of such property, he knowingly converts the funds or property to his own use in violation of the agreement or legal obligation. 

As with other theft crimes, whether you are charged with a misdemeanor or a felony depends on the value of the money or property stolen. If the property stolen is valued at less than $500, then you will be charged with misdemeanor theft by conversion. On the other hand, if the money or property is assessed at more than $500, you will likely be facing felony charges. A judge has the discretion to deem a crime a misdemeanor, even if it the money or property converted was over $500.

The penalty for a misdemeanor charge of theft by conversion includes a fine of no more than $1,000 and a sentence of no more than 12 months confinement. 

The penalty for a felony charge of theft by conversion includes a prison term of one to ten years.

Practice Note

There are various types of theft crimes in the state of Georgia. If you have been arrested for a crime, do not attempt to figure out the process on your own. Call us now. We can help you today.