I'm a 30 year old that lives in Baltimore City. About 7 years ago I received conspiracy to distribute charges for marijuana. All charges brought against me were misdemeanors. But just this recent year I went to the gun range with my father and 1 of my friends. All the guns that went with us were owned registered by my father . The incident invoved took place in January and I was indicted on charges of unlawfully owning and transporting a regulated fire arm with a felony conviction when they did a database check of the range . The kicker is I have never been charged or convicted of a felony before in my life. Because of this situation I lost my job cause my backround check shows me as being a convicted felon with a gun. On top of that I was never arrested nor a warrant was ever put out for me I received a charging paper in the mail full of felony gun charges that guidelines require me to be a felon and an arraignment date. At that time I tried to acquire a public defender but my previous boss butchered my taxes and they were not filled for last year so I was not able to. I had an arrarraigment set for January that was postponed with out my knowing after the only sumons I received was delivered by mail for 3 felonies. When I first received the charges I went to 3 police stations and the court house but they were no help . On the day of the postponement that I was unaware of I tried to explain my situation but he refused to hear it or check for me. So now I am a month without a job and unable to find work because of the bogus charges stating that I am a convicted felon. At the end of February I was pulled over for having a tag light out and the cop had told me I had another arraingment date in march in which I received no summons for. So I get the date from the cop and show up with out receiving a summons. I went before the judge tried to explaon that I did not meet the guidelines with never being charged of a felony and shw refused to even check to see and told me I had to hire a lawyer. Then I asked the states attorney to check to see if that was true and he told me flat out no. so now it has been 3 months ew ith out full time work trying to survive off sidework I can find.

Is it possible to sue the chargening department for loss wages and lawyer fees if I am able to acquire a lawyer and the case gets thrown out. I would apreciate the help

Hello B:

Nahhh, you'll NEVER successfully sue the cops..

excon

You need to find out what when wrong and when, but going from department to department in person, asking politely, putting up with people who are no help, and patiently trying. If you could afford a lawyer, it could all be done in very little time.
We don't know what's true or not about the misdemeanors, if they added up to a felony you didn't know about or which happened as a result of some law change right at the same time, if there was some paperwork snafu, if you didn't put in change of addresses - all that minutiae.

Let me make sure I understand:


Seven years ago you were charged with conspiracy to distribute, all misdemeanors.

You have been charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm concerning an incident which occurred last January. These charges stemmed from a background check done at the range.

You received something in the mail describing these charges and a January arraignment date. You could not get a public defender because your previous employer made an error on your tax return. You went to court on the date specified, but no one knew anything about it.

You were fired because of these charges.

In late February, you were pulled over and the officer advised you of an arraignment scheduled for some time in March. The judge refused to even determine if you qualifed for court-appointed counsel. The prosecutor also refused to look into whether you qualify for an attorney.



I have some more questions for you:

Why do you think your boss was responsible for doing your taxes? That's your job, the employer simply has to report the wages paid to you.

Have you gone to the office of the public defender to try to get the matter of your qualifying for a court-appointed attorney figured out?

Finally, to answer your question, no. You cannot sue for defamation until the present charges are resolved. If it turns out that, as you say, you have never been convicted of a felony, it is possible to then look into a lawsuit. You would have to prove who made the error and whether doing so was negligent.

Hello B:

Nahhh, you'll NEVER successfully sue the cops..

excon

Never say never. I did and won.

Now, in this case, I can't say for sure because all of this seems a little odd anyway.

I just wanted to point out that yes, in some cases, it is possible to sue and win against the cops.