thenatureboy420
Junior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Michigan
Hi. I am writing this for a few reasons. This is an incident that happened to me about 3 years ago. After taking a few con-law classes in college, I am wondering whether anything shady happened in my case. I am first wondering whether or not any of this would have warranted an easy overturn on appeal. Secondly, I was wondering if there is anything I can do now, if my rights were truly infringed upon. I'll explain what happened, and comment on the parts where I feel like something was fishy.
It started in my senior year of high school (2006). I was 17 years old at the time. I had no priors at all. I was driving down the street with a friend in my vehicle. There was a man riding his bike in the street, and I was frustrated at having to go 5mph. I was finally able to pass him, and I roll down the window and yell "please use the sidewalk". He responds with a variety of obscenities. Angered by his response, being a ****y little high schooler and wanting to have some fun with my friend, I proceeded to throw an empty plastic cup out the drivers side window, over my vehicle, and towards the man. The cup missed by a considerable amount. I left the scene.
I was contacted soon after by the local police department, who described the incident and said the man had gotten my plates and reported me. The officer, who was the liason for my school, asked me to come in with a parent to be questioned.
I came in, and at first I attempted to deny I had thrown the cup. The officer proceeded to explain that the man I had thrown the cup at also claimed that as I pulled up to him, I had hit him in the back of his head with the mirror of my vehicle (an SUV), and that if I did not admit to throwing the cup, he would charge me with vehicular assault. I know for a fact I didn't hit him, and my friend could also attest to that.
Should I have ever been warned about my rights here? Never was I warned about my right to silence, to an attorney, etc. And was there anything illegitimate about the questioning process? I believe it is safe to assume the claim that I had hit him with my mirror was false- I know I did not, it surely would have knocked him off (this was a huge mirror), and if he had indeed accused me of that, surely the officer would attempt to charge me with that as well. I feel like my confession was coerced by a lie. Did I just fall for a legitimate trick, or was this not legitimate? I don't know when miranda rights are enforced, but they were never read to me. But then again, I was never "arrested".
I received a citation for "throwing an object/missile from a moving vehicle"- a misdemeanor. I went to court on the date it specified. I met with someone from the court before the hearing who told me I would most likely receive one year of non-reporting probation.
I walk into the court room, get called up. The first words out of the judges mouth was "you are going to take a drug test today, are you going to pass or fail?" At the time I would occasionally smoke marijuana, but no prior incidents or anything involved with the case would indicate to the judge that I would likely fail a drug test. I responded by saying that I had quit smoking marijuana a month earlier after my mom caught me, something she confirmed. I explained that I believed I would pass but I couldn't be sure. Talk regarding the cup was limited to a few sentences where I admitted to throwing it. I would later find out that this judge is known for being an extremely harsh anti-drug crusader of sorts.
Should I have been advised of my right to counsel at this point, or offered counsel (my family doesn't have much money)? And does she really have a right to drug test anyone she wants?
After 5 days, I completed the drug test. I went each day but failed to complete it due to the difficulties one may have when trying to urinate with a man standing right behind you, watching directly and with a complete view provided by mirrors on all the walls. Kinda awkward. I passed the test.
I came to the court for my sentencing. Before being called forward, a man who was some sort of assistant to the judge (not sure of his official role with the court) came up and explained that the judge would like me to participate in a program where the judge holds court hearings in an auditorium of a local school. He advised me that she really wanted me to have my sentencing in front of students since I was close to their age, and explicitly stated that she may be more harsh on me if I disagree. Feeling like I had no option, and without counsel to consult, I agreed. I went up, she briefly spoke to me, setting in stone that my sentencing would be scheduled for one of her court-in-school programs. It was also at this point where she explained that the court would appoint an attorney for me for those proceedings.
Is it legitimate for me to be coerced in this manner to having my sentencing in front of a school?
On the date, I went to the school. Briefly met my attorney who explained that I wouldn't have to do anything, and that I would be asked if I would like to say anything, and that if I chose to it wouldn't really help, but could only hurt my case.
The court in school program started, in a large auditorium full of hundreds of students. A few cases were done before me, and they were getting treated extremely harshly. For the case immediately preceding mine, a young man with a DUI charge, his lawyer explained that he had now chosen to refuse to have his hearing at the school. He argued she had been extremely unfair and was punishing people too harshly in order to set an example. She agreed to postpone his sentencing until returning to the court that afternoon.
When my case came up, she proceeded to lecture me for several minutes about the dangers of smoking marijuana, without even mentioning the fact that I had quit a month prior, and had passed my drug test. For throwing a cup out of the window, which I was told before the case would probably result in 1 year of non-reporting probation, I was sentenced to the following:
- 1 year of reporting probation
- Twice monthly drug testing (at my expense)
- 30 hours of community service
- 10 hours of drug classes
- $500 in fines
- 90 days in jail, which was suspended. My lawyer explained afterward that if I were to violate probation once, the jail sentence would be applied.
Is this whole court in school thing legitimate? I was coerced into it under threat that my sentence would be harsher, and facts of my case were ignored and my punishment unduly severe so she could set an example and try and teach the kids something. How is that a fair trial? Or due process? Would I have been able to appeal the sentence on the basis that it is impossible to get a fair trial when there is an incentive for the judge to punish me extremely hard to show these kids "what happens when you do drugs" (or in my case, used to do drugs)
Any comments are appreciated. I just want to know if any of this was plainly illegitimate, and if there's anything I could do now to reconcile what I feel was an extremely unfair process. If you need more information to analyze the situation, just ask. Oh yea, and please ignore the immature username. I made it years ago.
Hi. I am writing this for a few reasons. This is an incident that happened to me about 3 years ago. After taking a few con-law classes in college, I am wondering whether anything shady happened in my case. I am first wondering whether or not any of this would have warranted an easy overturn on appeal. Secondly, I was wondering if there is anything I can do now, if my rights were truly infringed upon. I'll explain what happened, and comment on the parts where I feel like something was fishy.
It started in my senior year of high school (2006). I was 17 years old at the time. I had no priors at all. I was driving down the street with a friend in my vehicle. There was a man riding his bike in the street, and I was frustrated at having to go 5mph. I was finally able to pass him, and I roll down the window and yell "please use the sidewalk". He responds with a variety of obscenities. Angered by his response, being a ****y little high schooler and wanting to have some fun with my friend, I proceeded to throw an empty plastic cup out the drivers side window, over my vehicle, and towards the man. The cup missed by a considerable amount. I left the scene.
I was contacted soon after by the local police department, who described the incident and said the man had gotten my plates and reported me. The officer, who was the liason for my school, asked me to come in with a parent to be questioned.
I came in, and at first I attempted to deny I had thrown the cup. The officer proceeded to explain that the man I had thrown the cup at also claimed that as I pulled up to him, I had hit him in the back of his head with the mirror of my vehicle (an SUV), and that if I did not admit to throwing the cup, he would charge me with vehicular assault. I know for a fact I didn't hit him, and my friend could also attest to that.
Should I have ever been warned about my rights here? Never was I warned about my right to silence, to an attorney, etc. And was there anything illegitimate about the questioning process? I believe it is safe to assume the claim that I had hit him with my mirror was false- I know I did not, it surely would have knocked him off (this was a huge mirror), and if he had indeed accused me of that, surely the officer would attempt to charge me with that as well. I feel like my confession was coerced by a lie. Did I just fall for a legitimate trick, or was this not legitimate? I don't know when miranda rights are enforced, but they were never read to me. But then again, I was never "arrested".
I received a citation for "throwing an object/missile from a moving vehicle"- a misdemeanor. I went to court on the date it specified. I met with someone from the court before the hearing who told me I would most likely receive one year of non-reporting probation.
I walk into the court room, get called up. The first words out of the judges mouth was "you are going to take a drug test today, are you going to pass or fail?" At the time I would occasionally smoke marijuana, but no prior incidents or anything involved with the case would indicate to the judge that I would likely fail a drug test. I responded by saying that I had quit smoking marijuana a month earlier after my mom caught me, something she confirmed. I explained that I believed I would pass but I couldn't be sure. Talk regarding the cup was limited to a few sentences where I admitted to throwing it. I would later find out that this judge is known for being an extremely harsh anti-drug crusader of sorts.
Should I have been advised of my right to counsel at this point, or offered counsel (my family doesn't have much money)? And does she really have a right to drug test anyone she wants?
After 5 days, I completed the drug test. I went each day but failed to complete it due to the difficulties one may have when trying to urinate with a man standing right behind you, watching directly and with a complete view provided by mirrors on all the walls. Kinda awkward. I passed the test.
I came to the court for my sentencing. Before being called forward, a man who was some sort of assistant to the judge (not sure of his official role with the court) came up and explained that the judge would like me to participate in a program where the judge holds court hearings in an auditorium of a local school. He advised me that she really wanted me to have my sentencing in front of students since I was close to their age, and explicitly stated that she may be more harsh on me if I disagree. Feeling like I had no option, and without counsel to consult, I agreed. I went up, she briefly spoke to me, setting in stone that my sentencing would be scheduled for one of her court-in-school programs. It was also at this point where she explained that the court would appoint an attorney for me for those proceedings.
Is it legitimate for me to be coerced in this manner to having my sentencing in front of a school?
On the date, I went to the school. Briefly met my attorney who explained that I wouldn't have to do anything, and that I would be asked if I would like to say anything, and that if I chose to it wouldn't really help, but could only hurt my case.
The court in school program started, in a large auditorium full of hundreds of students. A few cases were done before me, and they were getting treated extremely harshly. For the case immediately preceding mine, a young man with a DUI charge, his lawyer explained that he had now chosen to refuse to have his hearing at the school. He argued she had been extremely unfair and was punishing people too harshly in order to set an example. She agreed to postpone his sentencing until returning to the court that afternoon.
When my case came up, she proceeded to lecture me for several minutes about the dangers of smoking marijuana, without even mentioning the fact that I had quit a month prior, and had passed my drug test. For throwing a cup out of the window, which I was told before the case would probably result in 1 year of non-reporting probation, I was sentenced to the following:
- 1 year of reporting probation
- Twice monthly drug testing (at my expense)
- 30 hours of community service
- 10 hours of drug classes
- $500 in fines
- 90 days in jail, which was suspended. My lawyer explained afterward that if I were to violate probation once, the jail sentence would be applied.
Is this whole court in school thing legitimate? I was coerced into it under threat that my sentence would be harsher, and facts of my case were ignored and my punishment unduly severe so she could set an example and try and teach the kids something. How is that a fair trial? Or due process? Would I have been able to appeal the sentence on the basis that it is impossible to get a fair trial when there is an incentive for the judge to punish me extremely hard to show these kids "what happens when you do drugs" (or in my case, used to do drugs)
Any comments are appreciated. I just want to know if any of this was plainly illegitimate, and if there's anything I could do now to reconcile what I feel was an extremely unfair process. If you need more information to analyze the situation, just ask. Oh yea, and please ignore the immature username. I made it years ago.