What is he facing???

[dianam92154@cox]

What is the name of your state?CA

Hello my son was arrested back in November of 2004 for a Grand Theft Felony for stealing money from his job in the amount of $6000!!! I know that is a lot of money, but he took it due to a gambling problem he had and is still working on. His sentencing is in three days on the 3rd of February. Since then he has started to go to GA classes, for the past two months and he has no prior offenses. He is currently going to school and does have a full time job. His uncle who has been with the police department for more then 20 years now, did write and personally call the probation officer who conducted the interview to vouch on his behalf and say that my son is a good kid! We have gone to church our whole life and I dont know what got into him, he took awards or certificates that the church has given to him in the past. When he went to the readiness the DA said they would not give state time, but would "possibly" give a max of 6 months county time. Now the attorney appointed to my son, close friends, and his uncle keep on re-assuring me and my son that he will not see no jail time, but will possibly be given a work furlow, community service, and ordered to of course pay the restitution. My son has also consolidated his credit cards so that the will be able to pay more of the money back. In your prior cases, circumstances, or whatever it is you have been through, what do you possibly see my son getting? He is in his very early 20's and still has a lot of life to live, but I know this would crush him and mess up his future. i know for a fact that his first night in jail was enough for him to know that he made a HUGE mistake! Please give your best and most honest advice! Thank you and God Bless!!
Sincerly,
A Hopeful Mother!!!

 

[seniorjudge]

Just my hunch here, but if there is not a substantial amount paid on the restitution (not promises but money) then I suspect he is headed for jail.

 

[dianam92154@cox]

Now I understand that his former employer would want the money right away, but he went ahead and spend it all!!! Now the reason I am so hopeful in not seeing my son going to jail is due to the fact that Mr. Arnold wants to actually get people out of jail and not into them. Now I read your signature and I understand that, but you have to understand my point of view and where I am seeing it from, I don't know what state your from and if you know whats going on in California, but we are in a huge budget defecit!!! Do you know it cost roughly about $26,000 to keep a inmate for one year, compared to $2800 a year to keep thatinmate on parole! Now if your Arnold and you see the huge difference, would you want to put someone with no priors in jail, who has not convicted a act of violence, rape, murder, or even drugs!!! Now you might be saying well that is a state thing and not a county thing. Do you also now what kind of defecit the county of San Diego is in right now?!?! We can't even decide who out mayor is going to be! This is why me family, close friends, and Im trying to convince my son is so very hopeful! There is also a scripture in the Bible that says "If God be for you, then who be against you!!!" And also california practices something called a scientific approach to every case and I hope that they see that my son is all I have and this is his first offense and I raised him in a single parent home all his life and I sure aint going to see him go off to jail for a couple of months!!!God Bless

Just my hunch here, but if there is not a substantial amount paid on the restitution (not promises but money) then I suspect he is headed for jail.

 

[CdwJava]

It may cost a lot to be IN jail, but leaving someone out if he is possibly a danger to society can be just as expensive - or more so.

I presume he is an adult based upon your mention of jail and not juvenile hall.

The Probation department will prepare a report for the court outlining his suitability for probation. This probation report includes issues of reliability, job, school, ties to the community, age, maturity, etc. If he has NO prior record as an adult or a juvenile, it's likely he'll do little if any jail time prior to probationand restitution.

I see by your zip code that you are in San Diego. The San Diego courts tend to be big on probation, but they DO put felons in jail for a short period of time prior to that probation - so the 6 months IS a possibility (though I would think 60-90 days is more realistic, if any at all prior to probation).

Whether he will go to jail or not really depends on the specific charges he has been convicted of, and what his prior history might be.

And I worked in your county for more than half my career, so I have some idea of the court procedures there.

- Carl

 

[dianam92154@cox]

Thank you Carl for your very uplifting comment. yes I do understand the possibility of jail time for my son and so does he, thats why it worries him. he doesnt even go out anymore with his friends. And that is what worries me, is if he does got how is he going to be if he gets out? Well from what I know the probation interview went really well and the probation officer was real understanding and nice. My son was there about 20 minutes early and has been very co-operative with everyone he has delt with. He has no priors what so ever and I feel is no threat to the community or his peers. He does not deal with money anymore and where he currently work, has no access to anything valuable. As for you comment on San Diego being big on handing out probation time instead of custody time, thats exactly what my son's uncle told me. All the DA really cares about is just convicting that person, so that they can look good. Whether thats true or not I dont know and could really care less! but thank you Carl and I really believe with all my heart that he will not see any jail time and will get past this great ordeal! Does it look good that he is going to school half time, works full, goes to GA meetings every week, the bills that he has to pay. What about that do they look at his bills and feel that a work furlow would be best for him? Well thanks anyways and once again God Bless!

It may cost a lot to be IN jail, but leaving someone out if he is possibly a danger to society can be just as expensive - or more so.

I presume he is an adult based upon your mention of jail and not juvenile hall.

The Probation department will prepare a report for the court outlining his suitability for probation. This probation report includes issues of reliability, job, school, ties to the community, age, maturity, etc. If he has NO prior record as an adult or a juvenile, it's likely he'll do little if any jail time prior to probationand restitution.

I see by your zip code that you are in San Diego. The San Diego courts tend to be big on probation, but they DO put felons in jail for a short period of time prior to that probation - so the 6 months IS a possibility (though I would think 60-90 days is more realistic, if any at all prior to probation).

Whether he will go to jail or not really depends on the specific charges he has been convicted of, and what his prior history might be.

And I worked in your county for more than half my career, so I have some idea of the court procedures there.

- Carl

 

[CdwJava]

Yes, they will (or should) look at his job and education history. Whether they will or have, I couldn't say. Doing well in all those things will bode well for probation.

He will have to understand that because of this crime his job opportunities may now be very limited. When asked if he has ever been convicted of a crime, he will have to answer, "Yes" and it will be for a felony (theft, burglary, larceny - or whatever it was). This will close a lot of career doors to him.

He can do fine if he perseveres, but this mistake will dog him.

- Carl

 

[dianam92154@cox]

Yes I know that and he knows that greatly. how long do you think it can be until he might be able to expunge this from his record? If his current job finds out, he might be forced to go work construction with one his uncles, which he is not use to, but if it calls for it he is going to have to. But I do believe the judge will grant him work furlow and allow him to not undergo custody time, I dont feel he's that much of a threat to society, his GA classes have really helped him out also. He doesnt even think about gambling any more, his friends are frequent poker players with this whole thing for poker going on right now and he always says NO to them and they always make jokes about him never going, but they just dont understand the situation. Do you know if having a recomendation for a SDPD on your interview looks really good? Well thanks again for all your knowledge and time. The Lord will bless you in only a way you know you need Carl. Thank you and may God bless you!

Yes, they will (or should) look at his job and education history. Whether they will or have, I couldn't say. Doing well in all those things will bode well for probation.

He will have to understand that because of this crime his job opportunities may now be very limited. When asked if he has ever been convicted of a crime, he will have to answer, "Yes" and it will be for a felony (theft, burglary, larceny - or whatever it was). This will close a lot of career doors to him.

He can do fine if he perseveres, but this mistake will dog him.

- Carl

 

[CdwJava]

A written comment from someone at the SDPD couldn't hurt.

As for the expungement, I do not think that is possible. A felony conviction is not an easy one to go away without a pardon. If he had been a minor when this happened, he might be able to have it sealed. But, as an adult, he's kinda stuck.

Here's a link for Expungement resources:

http://www.uslegalforms.com/lawdigest/expungement-criminal-records-law.php/CA/CA-EXP.htm

- Carl

 

[dianam92154@cox]

Update!!!

Well just a little update on my sons case. yesterday we received a call from his attorney, saying that he had received the probation report from the probation officer who interviewed him. Well the lawyer kind of gave us a little scare when he at first said that they recommend you do 180 county time and we were both speechless at first, but then he said "hold on wrong report!" He then corrected himself and said that the probation officer recommend all he do is 20 community service, the lawyer stated that my son made a very great impression on him and with all the letters, awards, and other things he brought to him. Now I know were not out of the boat yet, but my sons uncle does not want my son to go with a felony on his record, because he knows that it will haunt him, so we are still going to try to push this down to a misdeamenor. We know that this is not the final decesion and that will be made by the judge, but 9 times out of 10 the judge goes by what the probation report recommends. now I wanted to know will my son have to do the community service 20 consecutive days or can he do those on the weekends? Well this was just a little update for all of you who were reading this article, because I saw that there were a lot of viewers. So don't give up on yourself and "Trust in the Lord in everything and in all your ways acknowledge Him!" God Bless

 

[seniorjudge]

"...now I wanted to know will my son have to do the community service 20 consecutive days or can he do those on the weekends?..."

Have your SON (not you) ask the probation officer.

Make sure your SON (not you) keeps that probation officer happy.

 

[dianam92154@cox]

NO I will also ask seniorjudge, my son came out of me and I have the right to know what is going on with him!!! I don't need smart remarks like that to come from someone like you. This is suppose to be a sight were people can come to seek some sort of advice from professionals and people who have been in the same situation, I'm not even going to bother. God Bless

"...now I wanted to know will my son have to do the community service 20 consecutive days or can he do those on the weekends?..."

Have your SON (not you) ask the probation officer.

Make sure your SON (not you) keeps that probation officer happy.

 

[seniorjudge]

NO I will also ask seniorjudge, my son came out of me and I have the right to know what is going on with him!!! I don't need smart remarks like that to come from someone like you. This is suppose to be a sight were people can come to seek some sort of advice from professionals and people who have been in the same situation, I'm not even going to bother. God Bless

Post back when you realize that I gave you correct information.

If POs talked to every relative who called, that is all they would have time to do.

 

[dianam92154@cox]

Yes I will post back when I correct you! What state are you from and what kind of rude people do you deal with. I'm not saying I'm going to call the PO, but I will be there by my sons side and ask the questions that he may forget to ask!

Post back when you realize that I gave you correct information.

If POs talked to every relative who called, that is all they would have time to do.

 

[CdwJava]

Seniorjudge IS correct in that this is your son's case and not yours. He has to keep the probation officer happy - not you. They are also under NO legal obligation to provide you with ANY information. And depending on who the probation officer is, you may not be permitted in at their meetings at all. If you are, it will often be after they have obtained permission from your son to allow you in.

The probation officer preparing this report will almost certainly NOT be the P.O. that will be supervising him. And the P.O. supervising him may not take kindly to parents interfering. What many of them do is tell their charge to pass what they want on to their parents, but they won't do it. In fact, there can be legal consequences against the P.O. if he passes certain information on to unauthorized people - and you are not authorized to know about certain aspects of his case. Your son can pass info on, but the P.O. may choose not to.

As for the 20 days community service, that can often be done on a pre-arranged schedule. They may give him the option of providing the service through a community organization, or, it may be cleaning the roadways on weekends. Either way, it won't be twenty days back-to-back.

- Carl