FrustratedMom72
Junior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Pennsylvania
Bear with me, I'm gonna try to be as detailed as possible here.
We live in PA. My son is 14. He and a friend were playing a game they call jail break, back in November 2010. Basically, it's like hide and seek but outdoors, after dusk. It's not really something I agree with but this one time, I allowed it because he's a good, responsible kid.
Well, his brains fell out temporarily and he and his friend went into the football field across the street. Along came 2 more boys who decided they were gonna break into the concession stand and trash the place and steal some sodas and such. My son was not involved in this, he was actually telling them to stop, which they did, but over the two weeks following, the other boys apparently returned and totally trashed the place, causing over $500 in damages.
They have an officer at school, who interrogated my son. My son was lied to and told that they knew he was there because he was caught on camera (a blatent lie, as we know there are no cameras) but not knowing any better, he was totally honest with the officer and admitted that yes, he was there, but no, he was not involved in the trashing of the place. The officer intimidated him into making a statement, all this was done without my knowledge, at some point in December 2010. The officer advised my son that he would have to go to court as a WITNESS!
I knew nothing about this until last week when I received a phone call from the police department advising me of the situation. I asked why it took them 2 months to fill me in on what was going on and was not given an answer. I then asked why my son was interrogated without my knowledge and was told that my son was in fact NOT interrogated, which is obviously a lie because my son is telling me YES he was! He was pulled out of a class that he is failing, to be interrogated by this officer for over an hour!
I've now received a citation for my son for disorderly conduct.
Obviously, we're going to plead not guilty, but my question is.....can they use his statement against him? He's a good kid, a cop came to him asking questions, and he gave honest answers, but incriminated himself by stating that he WAS there in the first place! Will his statement be admissable? How is a child supposed to know to not say anything to a police officer when he's asked, without me being there? He doesn't know to ask for a lawyer! And he was lied to and told that he was merely a witness! Now his own statements are being used against him.
I really can't afford a lawyer, and there's nothing in the paperwork that offers a lawyer's service, what do I do?
Bear with me, I'm gonna try to be as detailed as possible here.
We live in PA. My son is 14. He and a friend were playing a game they call jail break, back in November 2010. Basically, it's like hide and seek but outdoors, after dusk. It's not really something I agree with but this one time, I allowed it because he's a good, responsible kid.
Well, his brains fell out temporarily and he and his friend went into the football field across the street. Along came 2 more boys who decided they were gonna break into the concession stand and trash the place and steal some sodas and such. My son was not involved in this, he was actually telling them to stop, which they did, but over the two weeks following, the other boys apparently returned and totally trashed the place, causing over $500 in damages.
They have an officer at school, who interrogated my son. My son was lied to and told that they knew he was there because he was caught on camera (a blatent lie, as we know there are no cameras) but not knowing any better, he was totally honest with the officer and admitted that yes, he was there, but no, he was not involved in the trashing of the place. The officer intimidated him into making a statement, all this was done without my knowledge, at some point in December 2010. The officer advised my son that he would have to go to court as a WITNESS!
I knew nothing about this until last week when I received a phone call from the police department advising me of the situation. I asked why it took them 2 months to fill me in on what was going on and was not given an answer. I then asked why my son was interrogated without my knowledge and was told that my son was in fact NOT interrogated, which is obviously a lie because my son is telling me YES he was! He was pulled out of a class that he is failing, to be interrogated by this officer for over an hour!
I've now received a citation for my son for disorderly conduct.
Obviously, we're going to plead not guilty, but my question is.....can they use his statement against him? He's a good kid, a cop came to him asking questions, and he gave honest answers, but incriminated himself by stating that he WAS there in the first place! Will his statement be admissable? How is a child supposed to know to not say anything to a police officer when he's asked, without me being there? He doesn't know to ask for a lawyer! And he was lied to and told that he was merely a witness! Now his own statements are being used against him.
I really can't afford a lawyer, and there's nothing in the paperwork that offers a lawyer's service, what do I do?
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