C.M. v. State

PER CURIAM.

C.M., a juvenile, appeals an order adjudicating him delinquent on a charge of petit theft of property worth less than $100, and placing him on juvenile probation. The testimony by the State’s witness (a Wal-Mart loss prevention officer) and by C.M. is identical to the extent that C.M. actually paid for the merchandise in question.¹ The State failed to overcome the defense of payment by introducing competent evidence to establish beyond a reasonable doubt that the merchandise was removed from the store premises (including the garden department) before the payment was made. § 812.014(l)(b), Fla. Stat. (2011). The adjudication and disposition order are thus reversed, and the case is remanded for the entry of an adjudication of non-delinquency and the discharge of the respondent/appellant.

Reversed and remanded.

1 . The shoplifting charge alleged the theft of headphones having a value between five and six dollars.