Yesterday, I was fired from work for internal theft x2, and fraud, but it was my first offence. I deeply regret what I had done, and vow not to do it again, and I understand I have to reep the penalties of my stupidity. But, now I am in a predicament... I am 19 years old, turning 20 in a month, and I live in Toronto, Canada, and I have no idea what I am supposed to do. I have to get my prints done in 3 weeks, and my court date is in a month and 2 weeks.

The criminal act I committed was, I had stolen a customer's gift card worth about 250 dollars, and used it to repurchase some of my own goods in order to minimize the amount I paid with a credit card. The police officer outlined that, stealing the customer's gift card was fraud and theft, and repurchasing my goods made it theft x2.

I am confused on what to do. A lawyer would be quite expensive for me, and I won't have that amount of money within a month to pay for one. Legal aid is the best solution but that would require my parents to be notified. And lastly, I could defend myself, but I doubt that would be the right approach. I ask for your help, advice or guidance on this mishap.

Thanks, from one idiot.

Your parents are going to find out anyway. Bite the bullet, tell them and get an attorney. As a first offender you will probably be able to apply for a diversion.

Hello, since this is theft involving an employer, it is usually treated more severely even though it is only your first offence. The first time you go to court they will give you a disclosure package which has all the evidence they have against you and how they are proceeding with the charges. After you have this you may want to see a lawyer depending on how they are proceeding.

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Originally Posted by r34lb1gm1st4k3

Yesterday, I was fired from work for internal theft x2, and fraud, but it was my first offence. I deeply regret what I had done, and vow not to do it again, and I understand I have to reep the penalties of my stupidity. But, now I am in a predicament... I am 19 years old, turning 20 in a month, and I live in Toronto, Canada, and I have no idea what I am supposed to do. I have to get my prints done in 3 weeks, and my court date is in a month and 2 weeks.

The criminal act I committed was, I had stolen a customer's gift card worth about 250 dollars, and used it to repurchase some of my own goods in order to minimize the amount I paid with a credit card. The police officer outlined that, stealing the customer's gift card was fraud and theft, and repurchasing my goods made it theft x2.

I am confused on what to do. A lawyer would be quite expensive for me, and I won't have that amount of money within a month to pay for one. Legal aid is the best solution but that would require my parents to be notified. And lastly, I could defend myself, but I doubt that would be the right approach. I ask for your help, advice or guidance on this mishap.

Thanks, from one idiot.

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Ok, so the first court date, what if I don't have a lawyer by then? I think I will have to seek legal aid, and just end up confessing to my parents, and hope that they support me in this unfortunate time. I have another question though, is it possible for me to go to my former employer and ask to pay back restitution in exchange for the charges to be dropped?

You can certainly try talking to the employer. But once the crime was reported it may be out of his hands. At the court hearing an attorney will be appointed for you if you do not have one.

I agree with the above, if the police have charged you the employer may not be able to drop the charges even if they wanted to.
You will have time after your first court date to get counsel if you want. In Canada legal aid is not always easy to obtain, it depends on your income and what the proposed sentence is. If no jail time, then it is harder to get. There will be duty counsel available at the first court date and they may be able to help you with some advice on how you should proceed.

Well I have found myself a reputable lawyer, and will be meeting with him this Sunday, and at the end of the meeting he will disclose a rough estimate of how much this ordeal will cost me. Right now he has informed me that I am highly unlikely to be eligible for the diversion program, but that jail time is most definitely not going to be the case. He told me the most probable outcome would be a restitution to the company, and community service, but it will unfortunately go on my permanent record. But, he has told me that he has seen these particular cases end in a surprising manner, where on the trial date, if I am pleading not guilty, the Crown decides to offer a diversion in order to side step any court dates.

Hi, I agree with what this lawyer is saying is most likely to happen.
Please let us know what does happen with your case. Good Luck.