Apology Statement to the Victim?

[SoopremeBeing]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Maryland


I am currently being charged with misdemeanor ID theft under $500. I knew the victim, as she was my former roommate's girlfriend. Long story short, the victim and I didn't like each other, and the roommate situation went awry after some bills and money went missing(on his part, not mine). I did come across her informaiton, and I did apply for a card in her name. I admitted this to the police and to my lawyer.

I have already been told that the prosecution is not pursuing jail time, but I have been thinking about writing a statement to the victim. I just honestly feel despite everything that happened with the roommate situation, it doesn't excuse what I did and I shouldn't have gotten so angry to commit a crime.

Is this wise? I am not sure if it will hurt my case or not.



Thanks in advance.

 

[TigerD]

It is not wise.
Don't do it.

Confession is good for the soul - it is terrible for your defense.

TD

 

[Just Blue]

Per posting Hx OP needs to say sorry to quite a few people.

 

[quincy]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Maryland


I am currently being charged with misdemeanor ID theft under $500 ... I did come across her informaiton, and I did apply for a card in her name. I admitted this to the police and to my lawyer.

I have already been told that the prosecution is not pursuing jail time, but I have been thinking about writing a statement to the victim. I just honestly feel despite everything that happened with the roommate situation, it doesn't excuse what I did and I shouldn't have gotten so angry to commit a crime.

Is this wise? I am not sure if it will hurt my case or not. ...

Admitting to the police that you committed the crime was probably not the smartest thing you could have done. Instead of acting on your own again by writing a statement to the victim, I recommend you speak to your attorney first and listen carefully to his advice.

Here is a link to the law under which you were charged: http://mgaleg.maryland.gov/webmga/frmStatutesText.aspx?article=gcr&section=7-104&ext=html&session=2015RS&tab=subject5

 

[SoopremeBeing]

Per posting Hx OP needs to say sorry to quite a few people.

I'm not even sure what you mean by that, but thanks for your response.

 

[SoopremeBeing]

Admitting to the police that you committed the crime was probably not the smartest thing you could have done. Instead of acting on your own again by writing a statement to the victim, I recommend you speak to your attorney first and listen carefully to his advice.

Here is a link to the law under which you were charged: http://mgaleg.maryland.gov/webmga/frmStatutesText.aspx?article=gcr&section=7-104&ext=html&session=2015RS&tab=subject5

Thanks for your response.

There has not been a great deal of dialogue between my attorney and I. My case has been postponed twice because the prosecution keeps saying they aren't ready to present their case. The only step so far is that 3 of the 4 charges have dropped.

This is my first offense, and I didn't think it was wise to make a bad situation worse by lying.

 

[quincy]

Thanks for your response.

There has not been a great deal of dialogue between my attorney and I. My case has been postponed twice because the prosecution keeps saying they aren't ready to present their case. The only step so far is that 3 of the 4 charges have dropped.

This is my first offense, and I didn't think it was wise to make a bad situation worse by lying.

Bad situations can be made worse by lying, but you do not have to lie to exercise your right to remain silent. And, when dealing with the police and criminal charges, it is better to say ONLY that you wish to remain silent.

You then should direct all future police questions to your attorney (and, when you are facing criminal charges, it is smart to have an attorney).

To address the question posed in your other thread, on your difficulty finding a job with criminal charges pending (https://forum.freeadvice.com/hiring-firing-wrongful-termination-5/pending-charges-maryland-losing-job-offers-615562.html), here is a link to the Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation's "guidelines" for employment applications and pre-employment interviews (what can be asked and what can't): http://www.dllr.maryland.gov/oeope/preemp.shtml

 

[HC1432]

Bad situations can be made worse by lying, but you do not have to lie to exercise your right to remain silent. And, when dealing with the police and criminal charges, it is better to say ONLY that you wish to remain silent.

You then should direct all future police questions to your attorney (and, when you are facing criminal charges, it is smart to have an attorney).

To address the question posed in your other thread, on your difficulty finding a job with criminal charges pending (https://forum.freeadvice.com/hiring-firing-wrongful-termination-5/pending-charges-maryland-losing-job-offers-615562.html), here is a link to the Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation's "guidelines" for employment applications and pre-employment interviews (what can be asked and what can't): http://www.dllr.maryland.gov/oeope/preemp.shtml

In response to your message on the previous employment law thread, thank you for the clarification. I should have stated that it is illegal for employers to ask about expunged/dropped charges AND general conviction and arrest records. In further response to the OP's question on that other thread I do not see anything in their description that would lead us to believe the employers he applied to have acted unlawfully in their approach but further information would be needed on exactly how they posed the question on their employment applications.

 

[quincy]

In response to your message on the previous employment law thread, thank you for the clarification. I should have stated that it is illegal for employers to ask about expunged/dropped charges AND general conviction and arrest records. In further response to the OP's question on that other thread I do not see anything in their description that would lead us to believe the employers he applied to have acted unlawfully in their approach but further information would be needed on exactly how they posed the question on their employment applications.

I agree that there is not quite enough information provided by SoopremeBeing to determine if there were problems with the application questions or pre-employment questions, or if the pending charges had anything to do with the employers not extending an offer of employment to SoopremeBeing.

If convicted on the ID theft charge, however, jail time is a real possibility, so SoopremeBeing needs to work with his attorney. The attorney can perhaps get this remaining charge dismissed or, at the very least, keep SoopremeBeing from spending time behind bars. Being in jail tends to hinder a bit one's ability to search for or maintain a job.