arriagnment/plea

[thomaslb95]

What is the name of your state? florida

I succesfully got my arriagnment date changed, but from what I could tell. I have no way to make a plea deal or talk to the prosecutor till court. Is there a way to talk before hand? It seemd that without a lawyer I have no or little rights? I have found lots of things lawyers can do on my behalf, but can't I do these on my own?
and if not does anyone know why the lawyer would have the ability to do these talks with the prosecitor and I am not?

Is it worth hiring a lawyer? I have priced some and the lowest I found was 1500$, any advice on this would be nice.

From the info I have found and from talking to who ever answers the phone at the state attorneys place, they say all I will get is probation since its a first offense but I don't want to take anyones word for it. I also saw that it seemed like the best thing was to plead innocent then talk to the prosecutor about a plea? is this correct?

 

[hdianne]

What is the name of your state? florida

I succesfully got my arriagnment date changed, but from what I could tell. I have no way to make a plea deal or talk to the prosecutor till court. Is there a way to talk before hand? It seemd that without a lawyer I have no or little rights? I have found lots of things lawyers can do on my behalf, but can't I do these on my own?
and if not does anyone know why the lawyer would have the ability to do these talks with the prosecitor and I am not?

Is it worth hiring a lawyer? I have priced some and the lowest I found was 1500$, any advice on this would be nice.

From the info I have found and from talking to who ever answers the phone at the state attorneys place, they say all I will get is probation since its a first offense but I don't want to take anyones word for it. I also saw that it seemed like the best thing was to plead innocent then talk to the prosecutor about a plea? is this correct?

Is this for a felony or misdemeanor? If it is for a felony ask for a public defender. What is the max. sentence you can get? You really need an attorney to deal with this for the best outcome. I doubt you will be able to speak with the prosecutor before your court date.

 

[Dave5150]

ALWAYS have a lawyer on your side. If your that dead set against payin 1500 for 5 minutes of work I cant blame you. Take into consideration how serious the charges are. If you pay the 1500 theres a chance you could walk away scot free. Probations no fun either my friend. Id have to have some more details of your case to give any better advice to you.

 

[thomaslb95]

my case is a misdemeanor for a bounced check. From all the info I have been able o get(which seems very little is out there, especially for free) is that I have to go to my arraignment before I can even talk to the prosecutor about anykinda plea type deal. I can't affor the lawyer right now. I figured if worse comes to worse I can plead innocent, waive my right to a speedy trial and get a lawyer after that, (since I will have the money) I am not sure if I am intitled to a public defender. I think I fit the money requirements, but I can only get one if they are seeking jail time. Which I won't know about till after the arraignment.(the legal system needs some work). but thanks for the advice and any new advice is always welcome.

 

[Dave5150]

I dont know how it is in FL but in PA you MUST have a lawyer before the case can even commence. Public Pretenders are better than nothing, and representing yourself. So I'd try my best to get one. The wheels of justice grind very ,very slow, so you'll have plenty of time save money for a real lawyer. 15 hun. sounds a little steep to me for just the first appearance. You should be able to find one who will go with you to your first appearance for like 500 bucks. Dont plead anything until you got your attorney and he's spoke with the prosecutor. 90% or so criminal cases end with plea bargains in this country, regardless of guilt or innocence. You wont do any time though. I think , in my opinion, the bottom line is the slicker your lawyer the better deal your gonna get for pleading guilty. If the DA wont budge then Id say get a rumbler for a lawyer and fight their corrupt asses!

 

[Dave5150]

The Arraignment BTW, is only the stage where the judge will set bail or bond (if any) or realease you on your own recognisance<(tried to spell it Since your not in jail now You most likely wont have to post any bail. But the arraignment aint ****. In PA, after the Arraignment you go to a preliminary hearing, that gets postponed three times, then its on to the Pretrial conference, another three postponements, then the actual court date, at LEAST 3 POSTPONEMENTS. You got plenty of time to think about what your gonna do bro. Just hang in there.

 

[mycarlb]

You need to ask for a public defender when you are arraigned... it's free so who cares...and they are paid to work with the DA to come up with a fast resolution... if it's a bad check then it should be resolved very fast... Is it just ONE bad check or a whole bunch??? If you even THINK you have more checks that will come back as bad, then when you plead out for this one, be sure to tell your attorney to plead to ANY AND ALL in order to satisfy any more checks coming in and your being subsequently charged...

Good luck, but DO NOT do this without council