Hi,
I had posted back in early Aug. about having been "caught" shoplifting and it truly being a misundertanding. Here was the pertinent info on the post:
"stopped after going to purchase some things & realizing my wallet wasn't in my purse. Figured it was in my car. So I put down the basket and told her I'd be right back. I had been in a hurry so i had HONESTLY already stuck the things I'd be using in my car ride home in my purse, with the HONEST intention of paying for them, as my basket was too full. (we're talking a sandwhich, soda, etc...). I walked out the door and immediatley a LP guy came up to me showed me his badge and said he needed my purse. I told him I was just running to my car to grab my wallet..no such luck. He "arrested" me for shopliftng on the things in my purse intended for purchase ~25. the basket which I really needed too was ~75, and he pulled personal items from my purse as well claiming them stolen.
I said I was willing to pay for everything. They asked for my id, which obviosly was in my wallet, they escorted me to my car, and to my utter SHOCK my wallet wasn't there. They had already placed me"under arrest" and read 1/4 of my rights & handcuffed me. Sans ID they said they needed to call the cops. and that as long as I had never been in trouble I wouldn't be going to jail.
Well I have been in trouble and am on 2 probations- driving stuff but that require no criminal law violations. I asked if we could call a friend to bring my wallet...(if the police come they call my POs one of which hates me the other adores me). So after an hour, I convinced one to go to my car to grab my cell.
I called a bunch of people and a friend left work to go to my apt and bring the wallet. I suppose you could say it was to my advantage that there had been a bomb threat at city hall in seattle, esp. since i was waiting for 3 hours RIGHT around the corner from the main police station. My id arrived they told me I'd receive court papers in 8-12. I refused to sign the gulty paperwork, only signed the paper banning me from the store and the one confirming my address etc, AND one that said they'd read me the "Miranda Rights," (later I realized they had not finished them, or allowed me an attny..."
I was advised per this forum to get a lawyer immediately and/or speak with my PD who was working on my DUI defered case which is an incredibly big deal in WA. My PO who hates me kept trying to show that I was not in compliance, so I had a PD. Okay that WAS over when I was shown incompliance. Now she found out about the theft charge and I'm headed back to ct for that. Regardless, my PD theortetically wasn't supposed to give advice, but he was a really awesome attny and person so he did. He told me to wait until I had ct paperwork before doing anything, as we had no way of knowing whether or not papers got filed.
I recieved ct papers on last monday saying i have to go for an Intake hearing, this friday. I followed the cts directions and went to get a PD. They gave the wrong instructions one just shows up. I don't have a lot of money, as I'm a grad student. However if I get convicted of this, I will go to jail on the other probations. It could be a year. My kind PO also located the charge, asked the story, and didn't violate me yet, though a conviction would indeed. I asked her if she thought I needed to spend the $ for a crimina; defense lawyer, since my experience has truly been that I've been better represented by PD than paid attnys.
"We decided" that I would check out this PD, and do what was necessary.
Okay that's the history. Now, my real questions. In a response to someone else you said the following:
"I would not plea not guilty, you see its kind of a mind game you don't know how much they know about what you did. so if you plea not guilty it will just piss them off and prosecute you to the fullest amount of the law however if your facing jail time the court can appoint you a lawer so take it. Work up a plea bargin which will decrease some of you sentence or what you have to pay out and even some of the charge.
now if you go to court and you don't see the LP that caught you then plea not guilty and charges should be dropped for failure to appear because it shouldn't happen but some times LP forget about a court case or just don't make it. some court LP don't have to be at the plea hearing if this is just a plea hearing tell them you want legal representation and get a continuence.
LP don't have to have surveillance tape of you doing anything their testamony is good enough for a conviction. Plus you have to remember if the lp has worked in the area for a good time they know the judge and their integerty is very good in that court system."
[quote]
1. Advice from lawyers is DEFINATELY plead not-guilty.
2. When you mention LP's NOT showing, thus case is dismisses. WHEN? At an intake? Arraingment (not sure if they are the same...AARON?) Pretrial? Trial?
3. You mention them having good integrity. heh...I was ridiculed and prompted to submit to racial profiling, which I did not, so they gave me "two points"--whatever. When I flinched at the, "if you've never been in trouble..." and they said "Oh, you have prostitution charges?" I listened to one of the LPs telling an underage girl who worked at the drugstore that he would show her "How they party in FL." She mentioned no ID, he said no problem, they could swing that. THEN, about 2 weeks after the incident, I was walking to my car in a parking lot that is shared by many businesses, one of which is the same chain of drugstore. Someone yells my name. It's one of the LPs and walks up to me. Although I had GROCERY bags, in my arms. He asks if I was in the drugstore. I say, "no, obviously I was grocery shopping." He asks "how [I'm doing] and what's shakin?" I look at him while I'm putting my groceries away. I say "things suck, but you should know that." He says "Oh man is this the way its gonna be now? We're just enemies? Can't we go have a drink and put this behind us?" I had told them that I am in recovery, so this was just out of control. It didn't even "occur" to me that he was actually hitting on me until I called the same friend who'd brought me my wallet.
So How's that for integrity? In your experience, have you ever been faced with aggressive criminal lawyers who question your integrity, or have you heard of anything like that? I have given you only a portion of the sordid details, negating comments about me in handcuffs etc...
Any thoughts on if I can possibly get these charges dropped?
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ANY ADVICE!!!!!

