Crimes of this sort are typically prosecuted as larceny, and may be either a misdemeanor or a felony, based upon the value of the services illegally obtained.
This category encompasses a wide variety of criminal activity including tampering with (or bypassing) a utility meter so that the true level of consumption is understated, leaving a hotel or restaurant or similar establishment without paying for the service and "turnstile jumping" or other methods of evading the payment of a fare or fee when using a public transit vehicle or entering a private facility normally requiring payment (e.g., jumping over the fence at a fair or concert).
Another common form is using another entity's dumpster without their permission, as this creates an expense to the party paying for the service.
These statutes have also, on occasion, been applied in the realm of health care, when hospitals or other health care providers have pressed criminal charges against indigent, uninsured patients who were unable to pay for their treatment.
[3] This scenario has prompted intense criticism, and is a key issue in the call for a major overhaul of the health care system in the United States.