The Illinois Compiled Statutes (ILCS) devotes Article 720 ILCS 5/16-3 to the protection of library materials. Some of the highlights of that particular act are as follows:
§16-3 (c) A person commits theft when he or she borrows from a library facility library material which has an aggregate value of $50 or more pursuant to an agreement with or procedure established by the library facility for the return of such library material, and knowingly without good cause fails to return the library material so borrowed in accordance with such agreement or procedure, and further knowingly without good cause fails to return such library material within 30 days after receiving written notice by certified mail from the library facility demanding the return of such library material.
§16-3 (d) A person convicted of theft under subsection (a) is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor, except that the theft of library material where the aggregate value exceeds $300 is a Class 3 felony. A person convicted of theft under subsection (b) of this Section is guilty of a Class 4 felony. A person convicted of theft under subsection (c) is guilty of a petty offense for which the offender may be fined an amount not to exceed $500 and shall be ordered to reimburse the library for postage costs, attorney's fees, and actual replacement costs of the materials not returned, except that theft under subsection (c) where the aggregate value exceeds $300 is a Class 3 felony.
For the purpose of sentencing on theft of library material, separate transactions totaling more than $300 within a 90-day period shall constitute a single offense.