what happens now?
April 26, 2009 1:54 PM Subscribe
A couple of days ago, I screwed up. Police were involved. What's next, and how bad is it?
First off, I'm getting a lawyer. I am not asking for legal advice. I'm just hoping that someone out there has been through similar and can tell me what to expect.
Without going into too much detail, I was arrested for malicious mischief II (a Class A misdemeanor here in Oregon). A window was kicked in. It was a condo, not a single-home residence or a business. By my own estimate, replacement and labor come to $100-$125, just over the $100 limit (under $100 is a class C here). I have no history of this type of thing, this is a first offense, extreme stress and alcohol were involved. This was no drunken rampage and is very out of character for me.
I have a court date. I plan to talk to a lawyer this week, but was wondering if anyone has had similar experience, what the chances are that I can avoid court, etc. If you're familiar with Oregon, particularly what to expect if it does go to court (what the likely or possible outcome is for a first-offense, extremely remorseful moron).
I'm scared of having a record, and terrified of jail.
First off, I'm getting a lawyer. I am not asking for legal advice. I'm just hoping that someone out there has been through similar and can tell me what to expect.
Without going into too much detail, I was arrested for malicious mischief II (a Class A misdemeanor here in Oregon). A window was kicked in. It was a condo, not a single-home residence or a business. By my own estimate, replacement and labor come to $100-$125, just over the $100 limit (under $100 is a class C here). I have no history of this type of thing, this is a first offense, extreme stress and alcohol were involved. This was no drunken rampage and is very out of character for me.
I have a court date. I plan to talk to a lawyer this week, but was wondering if anyone has had similar experience, what the chances are that I can avoid court, etc. If you're familiar with Oregon, particularly what to expect if it does go to court (what the likely or possible outcome is for a first-offense, extremely remorseful moron).
I'm scared of having a record, and terrified of jail.
I did the same thing, although not in the USA, around the age of 20, and was equally drunk and remorseful. I got one of those deals where if I don't goof over the following year then the charge would be dropped. It seems like a terrible deal at the time, but looking back 13 years later it doesn't seem like much at all. Best of luck!
posted by furtive at 3:06 PM on April 26, 2009
posted by furtive at 3:06 PM on April 26, 2009
Anonymous, please MeFi mail me. I'm taking the bar in Oregon in three months and plan to do criminal defense. I won't (and can't) give you legal advice but I can point you in the right direction and give you a general sense of what to expect.
posted by Happydaz at 3:15 PM on April 26, 2009 [1 favorite]
posted by Happydaz at 3:15 PM on April 26, 2009 [1 favorite]
While there are doubtless first-offender programs which could help you, you need to make sure that you color within the lines if you hope to benefit from them. Most importantly, whatever lawyer you hire needs to be a proven veteran in obtaining the specific category of relief you are seeking -- he should be well-known to the police and the prosecutors and appear regularly before the judge(s) you'll be facing. Lots of perfectly good lawyers simply aren't experienced in this specific area of work, and that's not going to end up doing the job for you.
One thing that you need to steel yourself for now is how brutally costly it may be in time and money to get the first-offender prorgram: between legal fees, court fees, "anger management" enrollment fees, a year of mandatory Alcoholics Anonymous (just an example, but not at all unlikely for diversion when booze is involved), etc., etc. you might be tempted to just to plead guilty and pay the fine. Almost certainly that will be a bad idea ... a non-traffic-offense misdemeanor is serious business - a lifelong red-flag, however unfair that might be (or seem) in your case.
posted by MattD at 3:20 PM on April 26, 2009
One thing that you need to steel yourself for now is how brutally costly it may be in time and money to get the first-offender prorgram: between legal fees, court fees, "anger management" enrollment fees, a year of mandatory Alcoholics Anonymous (just an example, but not at all unlikely for diversion when booze is involved), etc., etc. you might be tempted to just to plead guilty and pay the fine. Almost certainly that will be a bad idea ... a non-traffic-offense misdemeanor is serious business - a lifelong red-flag, however unfair that might be (or seem) in your case.
posted by MattD at 3:20 PM on April 26, 2009
I'd advise against getting advice from a law student. Things are quite different in practice than in school. Also, you may cause trouble for them. Contact a lawyer and pay no mind to any substantive answers here. Like many clients of mine you are seeking reassurance and anxiety reduction. Focus on a way to get those and leave the lawyering to an attorney who is representing you.
posted by Ironmouth at 3:37 PM on April 26, 2009 [5 favorites]
posted by Ironmouth at 3:37 PM on April 26, 2009 [5 favorites]
Silly question: what's the relevance of it being a condo versus a single-family home or a business?
posted by gjc at 4:43 PM on April 26, 2009
posted by gjc at 4:43 PM on April 26, 2009
Is there any way you can have the window replaced before you go to court? Are you on speaking terms with the window's owner? Would the window's owner be willing to drop the charge when you fix the window? Would the window's owner sign a notarized statement that the damage has been repaired to their satisfaction? Of course all the expense will be covered by you.
You may be able to make an appointment with the DA handling the case. If you have receipts proving the window was repaired and a nice notarized statement from the victim expressing that they no longer wish to press charges. No victim equates no charges, the DA may just drop the charges. They have bigger fish to fry than you.
IANAL, good luck!
posted by JujuB at 6:35 PM on April 26, 2009
You may be able to make an appointment with the DA handling the case. If you have receipts proving the window was repaired and a nice notarized statement from the victim expressing that they no longer wish to press charges. No victim equates no charges, the DA may just drop the charges. They have bigger fish to fry than you.
IANAL, good luck!
posted by JujuB at 6:35 PM on April 26, 2009
Oregon criminal lawyer here - there are a lot of what if's that can only be answered by your lawyer - and even though you are not looking for legal advice the answers to your process and procedure questions really are county dependent. Email me if you need a referral or general information about the county's procedures. DO NOT talk to the police or the DA. period.
posted by miss meg at 8:34 PM on April 26, 2009
posted by miss meg at 8:34 PM on April 26, 2009
Hire. a. lawyer. One who practices criminal law, regularly, in the court where you are to appear. Do it immediately. Do not do anything else. Do not make an appointment with the DA. Do not try to make it up with the owner of the condo. It will probably cost you a lot of money, more perhaps than the fine, if only a fine is involved, as it *probably* will be. But you don't know. I don't know and I have more knowledge about this than you do. I'm not going to say that cost is no object, but there's so much more to this than just the conviction itself. You're right-- you will have a record. An experienced lawyer (not someone preparing to take the bar exam, sorry) is going to know what resources are available.
Here's just one example, something that I know wasn't covered in either of the bar exams I took, or in their preparation-- both states where I'm licensed have a procedure to make a conviction go away if you behave yourself during the time of your probation. It has different names in different states, so it would probably be fruitless for you to try and find it yourself. In Missouri, there's two types, under the heading "deferred adjudication."
If you talk to the prosecutor directly, (s)he is under no obligation to tell you about this, and in general has no obligation whatsoever to help you. Get that civil servant shtick out of the way-- their job is to convict and to obtain punishment. Most misdemeanor prosecutors are out to build the most impressive won-loss record possible, with an eye to future employment outside the prosecutor's office.
Oregon doesn't appear to have any board certification for attorneys, so there goes that opportunity to find a good criminal lawyer easily. Do google-fu, something like "[your town here] criminal lawyer." The first hit will probably be the person who paid the most for SEO or whatever, but a browse through the first couple of pages of hits ought to get you some starters.
It may be that your offense isn't going to be worth hiring Perry Mason to defend you for a zillion dollars, but if that's all you run into, ask for an appointment, offer to pay for it (most criminal defense lawyers offer free consultations-- the cost comes later), and pick his/her brain on how to handle the prosecutor and what to ask for, like deferred adjudication.
posted by missouri_lawyer at 8:41 PM on April 26, 2009
Here's just one example, something that I know wasn't covered in either of the bar exams I took, or in their preparation-- both states where I'm licensed have a procedure to make a conviction go away if you behave yourself during the time of your probation. It has different names in different states, so it would probably be fruitless for you to try and find it yourself. In Missouri, there's two types, under the heading "deferred adjudication."
If you talk to the prosecutor directly, (s)he is under no obligation to tell you about this, and in general has no obligation whatsoever to help you. Get that civil servant shtick out of the way-- their job is to convict and to obtain punishment. Most misdemeanor prosecutors are out to build the most impressive won-loss record possible, with an eye to future employment outside the prosecutor's office.
Oregon doesn't appear to have any board certification for attorneys, so there goes that opportunity to find a good criminal lawyer easily. Do google-fu, something like "[your town here] criminal lawyer." The first hit will probably be the person who paid the most for SEO or whatever, but a browse through the first couple of pages of hits ought to get you some starters.
It may be that your offense isn't going to be worth hiring Perry Mason to defend you for a zillion dollars, but if that's all you run into, ask for an appointment, offer to pay for it (most criminal defense lawyers offer free consultations-- the cost comes later), and pick his/her brain on how to handle the prosecutor and what to ask for, like deferred adjudication.
posted by missouri_lawyer at 8:41 PM on April 26, 2009
e-mail miss meg (one above my original post) as soon as you can. Her offer of a referral is golden.
posted by missouri_lawyer at 8:42 PM on April 26, 2009
posted by missouri_lawyer at 8:42 PM on April 26, 2009
Upon seeing miss meg's offer, I withdraw mine :-) She'll give you better guidance on who to see.
posted by Happydaz at 8:46 PM on April 26, 2009
posted by Happydaz at 8:46 PM on April 26, 2009
DO NOT talk to the police or the DA. period.
This can not be stressed enough.
Hiring a criminal lawyer is tough. Things to look for, how many cases per year, how many trials per year, were they ever a prosecutor or public defender, etc. In this case though you want someone who has an established relationship with the DAs so that they can most effectively negotiate a deal for you, preferably pre-trial intervention. The Court Clerk's Office is often quite knowledgeable about who the good criminal attorneys are in their district. If all else fails try to find someone rated AV in Martindale Hubble.
posted by caddis at 9:01 PM on April 26, 2009
This can not be stressed enough.
Hiring a criminal lawyer is tough. Things to look for, how many cases per year, how many trials per year, were they ever a prosecutor or public defender, etc. In this case though you want someone who has an established relationship with the DAs so that they can most effectively negotiate a deal for you, preferably pre-trial intervention. The Court Clerk's Office is often quite knowledgeable about who the good criminal attorneys are in their district. If all else fails try to find someone rated AV in Martindale Hubble.
posted by caddis at 9:01 PM on April 26, 2009
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posted by StickyCarpet at 2:07 PM on April 26, 2009