I'm a college student at NDSU in Fargo, ND. Due to a lack of available parking permits ($110/year) in the lot I desired, I decided in my infinite wisdom to counterfeit one. This was apparently not a good idea, and I was eventually caught using it. The permit was used between September 2007 and January 2008.

I had to pay a $10 parking ticket (evidently for not having a permit) and forfeit the permit. I assumed everything was over, but then I received a summons to Municipal Court in the mail last week. I was charged with Theft of Service (parking), which in Fargo is a class B misdemeanor (max. 30 days in jail, $1000 fine).

I don't deny that I committed the act. I paid the original parking ticket and forfeited the permit with 12 hours of receiving notification that I was busted. Knowing this, I still met with a few different attorneys who told me varying things. I could plead non-guilty, waste resources and possibly end up with just a fine. I could plead guilty, pay fines, possibly get probation and (unfortunately) jail time. I plan on just taking the high-road and pleading guilty.

This is my first offense and I'm by no means trying to get out of punishment. I wronged and therefore my wrong should be made right. However, the prospect of jail time has got me literally scared, for lack of a better word, poopless. Realistically, is there that much of a possibility of me doing time? I'd hate to see one parking permit wreck my entire semester in college.

Option 2, have attorney work out a plea agreement, you do community service, pay a fee, and after you do the community service the case is dismissed, ( therefor no criminal record what so ever)

This is a common way judges often let college kids off the hook for being young and stupid.

Thanks for the reply. I did ask two different attorneys about that. He said that the City Prosecutor here rarely will even think about a plea deal unless the defendant pleads not-guilty and requests a jury trial and gets it moved to district court. Even then, one attorney said I had just as good of a chance of getting anything done that way as I did just going in and fessing up.