Petty theft being charged by Palmer and ociates law firm.?

My nephew is 16 yrs old, stole $7.00 from a store and admitted to it. The item was left in the store and the parents were told that he is no longer allowed in the premises. 2 weeks later they received a letter from Palmer and ociates law firm demanding $350 civil penalty claim and should be paid in 20 days. Is this a normal amount of penalty? This incident occured in CA. Please advise.