felony gun possesion vrginia..please help

[ksmith92]

felony gun possesion virginia..please help

state is Virginia... ok so 34 years ago when my dad was 18 he was riding around with some friends (my dad was driving) and they stopped and picked up a hitch hiker. well one of his friends had a gun and robbed the guy they picked up and threw him out the car. my dad and his friends were charged with violent felonies and my dad did a year in jail and hasn't been in trouble since. ok fastforward 34 years im 22 now and my dad and his wife (my stepmom) have bought a house in the middle of the woods and being as how they are on about 2-3 acres(a lot of witch is woods) I would take my guns out there (2 shotguns and a rifle) and go hunting and sometimes leave my guns at his house (stupid I know)...ok now 2 months ago my dads wife left him and filed for divorce well when she did my dad went to see a lawyer who told him to change all the locks on the house and to not let her back in or to let her take anything from the house..well she came back one night to get some stuff and found the doors locked so she called the police on the spot and told them my dad was a felon in possession of firearms (she knew my guns were there at the time) and had him arrested. now my dad is in jail with no bond facing 5 years (possibly 15 if they charge him with each gun) in prison and she now has the house and is selling all of his stuff...my dad could of had his rights restored years ago. why are they doing this to him? is there anything that can be done? my dad is a good man he is not violent and dosnt deserve to sit in prison for possibly the rest of his life...please help someone

 

[FlyingRon]

He needs a lawyer. Virginia is NOT the place to be breaking gun laws. The commonwealth has rather liberal gun laws for those who are law abiding and throw the book at those who use guns in crimes or possess them when they shouldn't. He should have known to tell you to keep the guns broken down and locked outside of his access (like your car) rather than within his constructive possession.

 

[ksmith92]

I mean that cant be changed whats done is done but I mean is there nothing I can do? I mean he messed once 34 years ago can they really just lock him up like that and throw away the key ..and they wont even give him bond it makes no sense my dad is a good man he is not violent..there must be something that can be done. if they lock my dad up for 5 years or more I don't know what ill do... I know ill never have faith in the justice department on the united states government ever again

 

[HighwayMan]

...is there nothing I can do?

Nothing you can do besides getting him a good attorney.

I know ill never have faith in the justice department on the united states government ever again

This has nothing to do with the Department of Justice - it's at the state level. If you meant the "criminal justice system" then you should have faith in it because it is apparently working well in this case.

 

[FlyingRon]

You can cry about how cruel the government is, but the truth of the matter is that your father participated in an armed robbery and knew he shouldn't be around guns and you helped "throw away the key."

Crying here isn't going to change anything. As pointed out he is in desperate need of an attorney, and since you're majorly involved in sending him up the river, it would be nice if you helped.


A lawyer can investigate the incident impartially and without the drama to see if the initial siezure and search was indeed reasoanble, whether your father had real constructive possession, whether he fits in to the "knowingly and intentionally" part of the statute that he has been charged with. If he goes to court without an attorney, he can be assured he very much will be subject to the no-parole mandatory five year sentence.

 

[Indiana Filer]

I'd advise your father not to hire the attorney who gave him the bad advice about locking his wife out of the home. He shouldn't have done that, and any decent attorney would have told him it was a bad idea.