When some ******* is holding your property and is standing toe to toe with you, would you rather ask him nicely to please return your property and let him, the person who has proven himself to be a felon, choose what to do, or would you rather take the necessary steps to ensure your own personal safety, retrieve your property, and restrain the criminal for the police to handle? It's an obvious answer, and attacking the OP's actions as excessively violent is crap. Was the perp injured? Bruised, even? A mild front choke is uncomfortable, but I wouldn't go as far as calling it violent at all.

Excessive violence would be eye-gouging, excessive groin strikes, joint locks, small joint manipulation, striking the perp unnecessarily or to the point of unconsciousness, that kinda stuff, stuff that leaves permanent damage. A few minutes of discomfort is not permanent damage. An unhappy, busted criminal with no injuries + return of property = great result for everybody involved, including the criminal.

You're living in a flowers and rainbows fantasy world if you think a front choke and takedown is 'excessively violent' in the face of felony property crime. If it were me, I wouldn't have hesitated to choke the guy unconscious given the opportunity to lock up a clean choke. It's safer for everybody involved and much less violent than striking a resisting guy into restraint/submission while waiting for cops. While some may be happy with recovering their property and letting the ****o run off, I see it as a last resort. Internet toughguy? Possibly. Do you run the risk of getting your ass kicked for defending your property? Certainly. Worth it? Totally.