B
bamaboo
Guest
My juvenile son was involved in a fight with another juvenile boy. My son had major surgery on his ankle and leg four weeks before this fight occured and was in a cast from his foot to his knee. The other boy pushed my son first which initiated the fight and grabbed hold of his injured leg twisting and turning it. Even though this caused considerable pain,since we live in Alabama, I have been told this is not considered self defense. Based upon the other boy's injuries (two broken jaws, tooth knocked out, concussion, laceration to the head)and statements from juvenile witnesses who were friends of the other boy, my son was charged with 2nd degree felony assault and he was held in a juvenile detention facility for 17 days. My son accepted a plea bargain as advised by his attorney consisting of a 5 PM curfew Sunday thru Thursday, 9 PM Friday and Saturday, 28 days of bootcamp, anger management classes, a trauma course, an accrument of over $19,000 in restitution being asked for with more cost to be added at a later hearing. I have no problem with him being punished for participation in this fight but one young man has come forward and stated that the other boy attempted to pull him out of a vehicle and initiate a fight prior to the fight with my son and four witnesses have come forward and advised immediately after the fight with my son, they saw the other boy run over to the back of a truck which spun out of the parking lot while he was attempting to climb in the back. This threw him to the pavement, face first, and he had to be bodily picked up by others and put in a vehicle. This information leads me to think that some? all? of his injuries may have occurred at this time instead of during the fight. If anyone who saw him fall made a statement and did not mention the fall was this not withholding crucial information? If this information was not withheld, why would a felony assault charge be lodged when there is no way of knowing when all the injuries occured? Shouldn't the judge and prosecutor's office be informed of this information if they are not aware of it? We are facing a restitution hearing in a few months and since my son was not aware of this boy falling until after he accepted a plea bargain, I would like to know if this would be considered a manifest injustice? What should I do if anything?