My question involves criminal law for the state of: California

So I got a petty theft citation and have court in about a week.

I was really hungry and something happened with my debit card so it wouldn't let me withdraw money. I took less than $5 worth of stuff from a grocery store, got stopped by a security guard and later cited by a police officer.

I'm 19 years old and have no past criminal record. I currently attend a university and I'm really worried about how this might affect my future employment prospects.

I'm was planning to tell the court and be totally straight-up and honest. I was simply hungry and had no other choice. But now I'm reading that it's not always a good idea to plead guilty during an arraignment.

I would really like some advice on how to deal with this. If you have any thoughts, please let me know. Thanks in advance!