My friend and I were caught buying stuff from Wal-Mart (toronto) on credit cards which did not belong to us... the cards had my friends name on them but did not belong to him... I used two of the cards to buy some stuff myself ($1200) and the rest of the cards were used by my friend to buy items from walmart. I was present with him but he swiped the cards to buy stuff... I do not have a criminal record but he does... we both got attested but they let me go after signing a promise to appear in court... I got two charges... fraud under $5000 (6 counts) and possession of stolen items (1 count). All the stuff was in my car as I was driving (they still have my car)... what kind of charges should I be expecting? Is there any way I can avoid jail time at all ? I made a big mistake and really regret doing so... I am willing to tell the cops who provided us with the credit cards as we were buying stuff for someone and not ourselves and were just getting paid for doing so... what really are my options and what can I do to avoid jail time if anything at all ?

Thanks

Can someone tell me a little more about it than just the diversion program ?

Thanks

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Originally Posted by fraud under

My friend and I were caught buying stuff from Wal-Mart (toronto) on credit cards which did not belong to us ... the cards had my friends name on them but did not belong to him ... I used two of the cards to buy some stuff myself ($1200) and the rest of the cards were used by my friend to buy items from walmart. I was present with him but he swiped the cards to buy stuff ... I do not have a criminal record but he does ... we both got attested but they let me go after signing a promise to appear in court ... i got two charges ... fraud under $5000 (6 counts) and possession of stolen items (1 count). All the stuff was in my car as I was driving (they still have my car) ... what kind of charges should I be expecting? Is there any way I can avoid jail time at all ? I made a big mistake and really regret doing so ... I am willing to tell the cops who provided us with the credit cards as we were buying stuff for someone and not ourselves and were just getting paid for doing so ... what really are my options and what can I do to avoid jail time if anything at all ?

Thanks

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You MAY be eligible for the diversion program: quoting myself:

"Ontario diversion program guidelines vary from region to region, courthouse to Courthouse. Eligibility for such a program is ALWAYS determined by the Crown Attorney’s office. There are no exceptions. You are not required to have legal counsel in order to apply.

If the offense - theft - is not major (property was recovered, not a large amount, not a repeat offender) the Crown Attorney MAY approve eligibility into the diversion program prior to the Curt appearance.

If there are prior dealings with the Police - and charges do not have to be placed, any prior dealings of a negative nature - the person will most likely not be eligible for the diversion program.

As part of the diversion program the eligible person will have to agree to complete certain tasks or obligations - perhaps watch a video, make a donation or volunteer time to a not-for-profit, write a paper on the crime.

When the tasks/obligations have been competed to the satisfaction of the Crown’s Attorney he/she will recommend to the Judge that the criminal charge (usually, theft) be withdrawn.

Each courthouse in Ontario has a different diversion program and eligibility requirements differ from region to region. Eligibility for the diversion program is always determined by the Crown Attorney's office. If they deem a theft offence to be of a minor nature (usually a small quantity of merchandise was taken and the property was recovered), the Crown may pre-approve eligibility into the diversion program. A person will not generally be eligible for diversion if they have had prior dealings with the police (even if it did not result in a criminal charge being laid). Once in the diversion program, the eligible candidate may be asked to complete one of a number of different tasks. In some jurisdictions, a person charged with theft may be required to watch a video on shoplifting. In other jurisdictions they may be required to make a donation to charity or complete a minimum number of community service hours - or both. Regardless of the requirements, the end result is usually the same. Once the diversion program has been completed to the satisfaction of the Crown Attorney, the Crown will recommend to the court that the criminal charge of theft be withdrawn against the accused person. This will result in the accused person maintaining a clean record (assuming they didn't have a prior criminal record).

If a person is not pre-screened as eligible for the diversion program, a lawyer may be able to convince a Crown Attorney to reconsider their decision."

Hey what happened to your case?

OP hasn't been back since September 2008. I would assume the matter is over.