Shoplifting and Likelihood of Jail Time

i was just charged with Retail fraud, along wiht one of my buddies ,i am aware of the Civil punishment and have no problem with my fine , i know i screwed up. the total of what i lifted came to 31.05 and i gave no resistance in the least, i was not actually the one caught myself, i confessed to haveing merchendice on me. after i filled out al of the civil paperwork mejeir gave me they called the county police .they told me that waht i did was pretty minor and i wasnt even tresspassed from the store... the dont belive ill try to lift again. The part i am worried about however is the legal side. the officer that arrived counted both me and the person i was with together wich would have totaled over 60 dollars, becasue we were counted as one person he arrested us and we both got a $100 bail. From what the officers at the jail were telling us , we should have not been counted as one person , but sepertaly, and we did not steal enough to be arrested. they said teh jail was already to crowded, and we shouldnt have been there ... I had alredy hooked up my bail, so i was out 5 minuets after they booked me , they gave me a court date and sent me on my way. waht scares me is what they can do to me at court, did i do enough to desere jail time, or will i most likly get off with a fine ... this is what has me worried

If you are age 17 or older, you are presumably charged as an adult. The likely sentence you would receive for a first offense would be a fine, probation, and possibly a community service requirement. If you are a minor you will probably be charged in the juvenile court, where the outcome can be a bit different.

i am 18 , so i know i am being charged as an adult , the part that does worry me , is im supposed to start college in little over a week, in pennslivania , so as long as i can do said classes and community service around my full time school schedule im not too worried ... the only thing i know i cant handle right now is jail time

You have a clean prior record? Under Michigan law, if you are between the ages of 17 and 21, you may be able to get a delayed disposition under the Holmes Youthful Trainee Act (HYTA). You would plead guilty, but your conviction would not be entered if you successfully complete probation. You can read more about it here.

waht exactly does probation entail? i hope to god this will not screw up my plans for my education, in my opinion i wouldnt think the courts would like to screw up my attempts to better myselfbut im not for certain. if this messes with my plans for my schooling , i really have no clue waht im going to do with my life, its already planned out i cant see myself changing it now

so with the HYTA my record is kept reletivly clean? or are they just delaying my punishment until after i complete my education?

With HYTA, if you successfully complete probation your conviction is not entered, and thus you can legally and accurately report that you have never been convicted of a crime.

wow thanks... that is kinda promising ... how hard is it to get HYTA. should i go through the work of hiring a lawyer ? i would i be fine without one in this case? i do add, tho they were not even for me , what i did steal was meidcation, would that affect the outcome?

I suggest that you consult a lawyer. If you were stealing a medication that is subject to abuse (hydrocodone, vicodin, ritalin, etc.) it could affect your situation.

this was just brought to my attention by my mother ... i didnt even think about it , but when i was arrested i was never read my Miranda rights , from what ive learned in the past i cannot be tried or convicted without having them read to me ... and the case needs to be thrown out ... i know the LP's office had a camerea and i belive it was also audio recorded. is this true about the miranda rights or am i having false hopes .... and no it was not and prescription meds , it was just cough meds