united-states criminal-law theft
Is a thief liable of paying the victim for the losses? How often this happens?
<p>When someone is convicted of theft, is the criminal liable to pay all the losses and expenses to the victim, including burden to the victim to report the crime, loss due to being deprived of the property, damages to the property (if returned), cost to acquire another property (if never returned) and the distress caused? If yes, is this reimbursement of expenses common or just happen under certain conditions?</p>

<p>A thief can be sued for the tort of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conversion_%28law%29" rel="nofollow">conversion</a> (the civil equivalent of the crime of stealing).</p>

<p>Try searching case reports for this term to get an idea of how often this occurs. In general, it is generally not worth the cost of a lawsuit to pursue someone who is desperate enough to be a thief - there is no point suing someone who has no money.</p>
