Ask Me Help Desk - Gang member registration

My son got arrested a year ago for hanging out with the gang members. He got probation
For a year. He got it off and tried to be a normal life. Unfortunately, he got arrested again
When he giving a ride after school to the documented gang member who he didn't know.
He got stopped by the police when the neighbors reported of gang activity to the police
When they saw three of them in his car drove by. The police searched his car without his consent and when they saw the car jack, the golf club and baseball bat in his car, they accused him of illegal weapons procession. Even though this stuffs he used to fix his car and play golf with his girlfriend etc. We all knew about this stuffs in his car for a long time. We tried to hire a lawyer to defense him but got no result. Both DA and my attorney tried to negotiate and asked him to accept plea bargained with 1 year probation and 5 year gang member registration. They only let him and us know 15 minutes before the court started. How do we have enough time to make the right decision? I remembered they said if we did not agree, then we have to go to the real trial and if we loose the case, my son can be end up to jail and got the record for the rest of his life. How can we do it for not sure to win the case and against the whole system? This incident happened when my son was 17 and now he is 18 years old and got the college acceptant letter before this incident happened. I'm a broken heart mother. All my goal is hoping for him to have a good education and now everything becomes up side down.

My questions are:

1. Is there any place that I can write a complaint about my son's case without paying any more money? I already waisted my money for my son attorney and now I'm broke!

2. Can my son still go to school? I know that when you fill out the application to any school or apply to any job, there is always the question like have you ever been arrested before..

3. What can I do now? Please help me.

Desperated mother!

Hello m:

Is he awaiting trial NOW?? What is the status of his legal representation. DOES he have a lawyer?? They should provide him with a lawyer.

excon

Okay seriously... how about back to the original post. The lady is asking for some help...

Quote:

Originally Posted by retsoksirhc

Okay seriously...how about back to the original post. The lady is asking for some help...

Looks up at the voice of reason.

I came on here to read about the advice for this person as I know someone in a similar situation and all I see are some people having a pissing contest. How disappointing.

Does anyone have and REAL advice for this person because I'd like to hear it too.

Did anyone come up with an answer for this lady?

1. There may be a support group in your area for people in your situation. Try starting with Crime victims groups.

2. It should not affect his ability to go to school, but it may affect financial aid.

3. You keep fighting and supporting your son. But I do have to add that you may need to take a hard look at his associations and judgement. There is a saying "where's there is smoke there is fire". And that could be the case here. I'm not saying it is, but you need to look at it from arms length.

P.S. I've cleaned up the fighting in this thread that was mostly inappropriate. This IS a law forum and as such answers need to deal with the legal issues and conform to statute.

Quote:

Originally Posted by rxnarunner

did anyone come up with an answer for this lady?

I think she needs to come back and give us an update as to what's going on. Like excon asked, we have no idea at this point if her son even has legal representation, which he most definitely is going to need.

This is the issue, first that is how plea deals work, normally in the back of the court, minutes before the court starts, you could have still said no and started the court hearing process and had your attorney go back to the DA with a counter offer or accept the offer latter normally.

The issue is, and I am sorry to say this, you see your son and think innocent. A jury sees him and looks at a gang member.

Golf clubs and baseball bats are weapons of choice and sorry that is what the police see. ** OK, I don't know of any gang members who go out and really play golf.
So in court you could have had golf pros come in and testify how often he goes out and plays.

Did you accept the deal or are you going to trial.?

1. complain? To who, write a letter to the editor, write a letter to your son telling him that he made bad choices in life.

This is how the system works,

2. Go to college, yes, he can stlil go to college

We already accepted the plea deals without any other choices. First, I thought my son lied to me too so I asked him to write a letter to the judge to tell him the truth what was going on on that day and he did. I did write a letter to the judge by myself too. Because he wrote the letter when he was upset so our attorney
Said it is not good to submit his letter to the judge and he submitted my letter instead. In the letter, I already clarified that we knew all of the stuffs in his car and they stayed in his car a while ago. We never ever knew they are
Considered as the illegal weapons. I also asked him to remove the gang member
Registration part. The judge read my letter but did not do anything except saying "thank you" He also said it was a part of the plea bargain so he couldn't or did not want to change
Anything. So now we got stuck!
After my son wrote the letter, I know my son is not a gang member but the law purnished him because he associated with the gang members by giving them a ride especially one of them is a documented gang member who my son didn't know and the stuffs in his car the police considered as illegal weapons!
According by the law, the police has no right to search his vehicle because he didn't violate any traffic law but they did it anyway. They said they search with his consent and
Because they saw the car jack,golf club, etc in his car, they considered he and the others will use them as the weapons for fighting. Who do you believe? The police or my son? Everyone knows the answer!!
I read a couple articles about gang member registration and feel very depressed. I was crying for a week now and I need to talk to someone who understands the law may explain it to me or give me some professional advices.
I'm sorry for making you guys misunderstanding and upset to each other. That is not my intention to do.
Thanks everyone for reading my posting.

Hello again, P:

There's nothing you can do now. Once a plea agreement is entered into, nothing can change it...

The good news is there IS life after a conviction. He CAN go to school and make something of himself... He has a long life ahead of him and I'm sure he'll do well with a mother like you.

excon

Yes he had a choice, he did not have to accept the plea agreement. You could have fought it in court. If the search was truly illegal (and I suspect the police would have justified it as probable cause since he was with known gang members), it could have been thrown out during trial.

But that's water under the bridge. He accepted the plea and he's stuck.

You said he was 17 when this happened. Was he tried as a juvenile or an adult? If it was as a juvenile, then that record should be sealed. So if he goes to shool and completes his education, it should not be picked up by background checks.

As others have noted, your son showed bad judgement in who he associated with. He will need to be VERY careful in the future about choosing who he gives rides to and hangs with.