No charges to be filed today in jewelry theft case linked to Lindsay Lohan
Prosecutors in Los Angeles said that no charges would be filed on Monday against actress Lindsay Lohan in connection with the disappearance of a $2,500 necklace from a Venice jewelry store.
It was not immediately clear if or when prosecutors, who have been presented a case by the Los Angeles Police Department, would move forward with criminal charges.
If Lohan is charged in the case, it would be the most serious criminal count to date for the actress, who has made headlines for drunk driving and stints in rehab.
Attorney Dmitry Gorin, a former prosecutor, said a suspect in such a case could face felony grand theft and second-degree burglary charges.
A conviction can result in probation or jail time. It could also be deemed a violation of her probation for a 2007 driving-under-the-influence conviction.
In addition to her probation, Lohan faces a criminal investigation in Riverside County involving allegations that she shoved a worker at the Betty Ford Center.
Referring to the necklace case, Lohan's attorney, Shawn Chapman Holley, released a statement over the weekend saying, "We vehemently deny these allegations."
Last week, police detectives presented the results of their investigation into the alleged theft to prosecutors. Detectives investigated whether Lohan stole a "one-of-a-kind" necklace that went missing last month from a Venice jewelry store not far from where she lives.
The piece, described as a gold necklace with semiprecious stones, disappeared Jan. 22 from the store in the 1300 block of Abbot Kinney Boulevard, and police began investigating a few days later. According to law enforcement sources, Lohan was seen in a store security video wearing the necklace before it was reported missing.
After detectives began looking into the case and preparing a search warrant, a Lohan associate took the necklace to the Pacific Division police station, sources said.
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-- Andrew Blankstein and Richard Winton
EDITOR'S PICKS:
And if I had stolen some jewelry, how long would it take the cops to arrest me? She claims it was a loaner, yet there is no paperwork to back up this claim. I hardly believe that some store is going to loan out jewelry to a person simply by a verbal agreement. What if the piece was lost or stolen? Insurance companies demand paperwork for transactions like these. And the fact that she had someone run to the police station to return it when she heard the cops were coming for her is telling, too.
LA DA's need to stop with the special treatment given to movie stars!!
Posted by: Todd | February 07, 2011 at 10:21 AM
Really? WOW...what a surprise.
Posted by: Steve M. | February 07, 2011 at 10:23 AM
The first line in this story is confusing and should be rewritten.
If you read the first line literally it suggests that Lindsay Lohan will NEVER be charged with a crime in connection with the theft of the necklace.
But I think the writer only meant that no charges will be filed on Monday but could be filed at a later date.
This requires clarification.
Posted by: American Dreamer (Roving Gawker Exile and Truth Teller) | February 07, 2011 at 10:49 AM
If it were anyone else they would be sitting in jail already.
This dumb girl needs to get locked away for five years..even better... make it life.
she is making a fool of our court systems.
what a joke
Posted by: Sam | February 07, 2011 at 10:59 AM
What does it take to put this "has been or never was" I should say, in jail where she belongs. Anyone else in this state would have been in jail a ong time ago. Please do us a favor and get her off the street and out of the news.
Posted by: Robert McBride | February 07, 2011 at 11:15 AM
It was reported that the jewelry store was in a weak position because they did not contact Ms. Lohan directly after the necklace went missing. That's preposterous. We expect the police to investigate reported felonies. It's not incumbent upon the jewelry store to do their leg work when there was no loan of jewelry offered to Lohan, which requires insurance, credit card info and a signed contract. Justice delayed for celebrities certainly is justice denied the rest of us.
Posted by: North of Sunset | February 07, 2011 at 11:24 AM
Ha ,
More proof that Los angeles is a stratified and corrupt town how many minorities get years in prison for lesser crimes?
This is a slap in the face for all Los Angeles residents!
Posted by: shadowpark | February 07, 2011 at 12:45 PM
its long over due to impeach steve cooley he is a corrupt DA and is under investigation by the FBI .
This guy needs to be behind bars!!!
Posted by: shadowpark | February 07, 2011 at 12:59 PM
the da's officers are dumber than lohan.
Posted by: kuruc | February 07, 2011 at 01:18 PM
Oh, come on people! Does anybody care anymore about this piece of white trash?
Posted by: kgoddess | February 07, 2011 at 01:24 PM
Some 'experts' here in the Times comments appear to have been at the scene, and in court, and in the DA's office, and in LL's attorney's head. Do I think LL is trouble? Yes. Is she guilty? I wouldn't have a clue, I wasn't there, at any of the multitude of places some of the comment experts have been, apparently. Is this LL stuff annoying? Oh yeah... But I'm not the judge, the jury or the executioner, and none of us should be. Here's a novel idea - wait for the legal outcome instead of putting the mantle of justice and self-righteousness upon your shoulders.
Posted by: Metro Mike | February 07, 2011 at 01:26 PM
It could very well be that someone at the jewelry store loaned the item to Lohan without the jewelry store owners consent. Usually security is fairly tight at jewelry stores, especially involving the actual jewelry itself. I have a hard time believing that Lohan was allowed to walk out the front door with a stolen necklace. So someone at the jewelry store allowed her to put on the necklace and then she was allowed to walk out the front door with it around her neck by someone at the jewelry store. It isn't uncommon for celebrities to be allowed to borrow jewelry items. The jewelers like to see there wares get photographed around some celebrity’s neck so somebody will then want to buy the item. I really doubt that Lohan went in there to deliberately steal a $2500 necklace. This is probably a simple misunderstanding that has been blown way out of proportion.
Posted by: Greg | February 07, 2011 at 03:10 PM
I guess we can completely stop pretending there is equality and justice in America. Perhaps we should officially adopt a two tired system; one for elites and one for the rest of us.
Posted by: Annoyed | February 07, 2011 at 07:19 PM
The results of their investigation into the alleged theft to prosecutors. Detectives investigated whether Lohan won a one-of-a-kind "necklace that disappeared last month from a jewelry store in Venice, not far from where she lives.
Posted by: gold eagle sets | February 09, 2011 at 03:00 PM