Lawyer costs question

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a c i d.f l y

a c i d.f l y

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I have a very similar inquiry, but for a much different situation. My license was suspended in 2006 for failure to appear in court to a summons I wasn't actually issued, for an accident involving a vehicle I'd sold but ignorantly failed to file a transfer of ownership for. I sold a vehicle for $500 expecting them to take it to Mexico, instead it got 3rd handed to some asshat who hit and literally ran from the scene. I wasn't in a good place, moving every 2-4 months so my address wasn't up to date... Apparently the cost of the damage due is $4000. Working from home and using my passport I've avoided needing an actual driver's license for over a decade, but figure now that I have a reasonable income it's time to resolve the situation and become "legal". I hit major brick walls trying to get in touch with local enforcement and was only able to obtain the case number, with no direction otherwise...

Vehicle was sold to family, who transfered to a green card carrier, to another green card carrier, all of whom I have information on. On a scale of Nagasaki to Trump, how fucked am I?
 
Dandai

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I wonder if there’s some sort of statute of limitations? 13 years is a long time.
 
Ambiturner

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Dandai said:
I wonder if there’s some sort of statute of limitations? 13 years is a long time.
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Shouldn't apply to the DMV. They play by their own rules.

If he has a hit and run warrant, he still has ro take care of it even if the DA doesnt want to pursue charges and the DMV won't reinstate anythint until its been taken care of. So hopefully the amount of time makes things easier, but best case scenario you still have a bunch of hoops to jump through
 
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zombiewizardhawk

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Well, finally stopped procrastinating and called the clerk of courts about this. She said my two options were to go back to NC for court or hire a lawyer to go to court for me there. I'm assuming if I just flew down there and turned myself in it would only be 10 days in jail total since i'd probably get credit for the days I spent while waiting to see a judge but I have a tendency to get screwed by the legal system so it could end up being a lot worse (like 'ok your court date is in 7 months'). On the flip side, lawyers are expensive and I'm not really confident that paying one would result in me just getting the absconding/original charges dropped.
 
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Sanrith Descartes

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zombiewizardhawk said:
Well, finally stopped procrastinating and called the clerk of courts about this. She said my two options were to go back to NC for court or hire a lawyer to go to court for me there. I'm assuming if I just flew down there and turned myself in it would only be 10 days in jail total since i'd probably get credit for the days I spent while waiting to see a judge but I have a tendency to get screwed by the legal system so it could end up being a lot worse (like 'ok your court date is in 7 months'). On the flip side, lawyers are expensive and I'm not really confident that paying one would result in me just getting the absconding/original charges dropped.
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I'm not a lawyer and I am not in NC so take this into consideration. The reason probation is such a shitty deal that DAs push is that if you violate you "can" be sentenced to time equal to what's left of the probation even if the original crime would have given you a much shorter sentence. It's a way of fucking people on the assumption they will violate. So you trade your 30 day jail time for a year of probation and violate 6 months later. It is possible a judge can dunk you for 6 months in jail (the remainder of the probation).

You might want to consider calling legal aid or the public defenders office in the NC county of record before you opt to turn your self in.
 
TheBeagle

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You continue holding back your entire life by forcing yourself to take shit jobs because you don't want to do 10 days?? Bro...

I did a lot of stupid shit in my 20's and did the same dance you're doing right now. It sucked and the time it held me back I will never get back. Just bite the bullet dude. Make sure your rent is paid up, buy a fucking bus ticket to NC, do the fucking 10 days, and leave that jail a new man ready to move on with your life. The economy is still roaring and without that warrant hanging over your head you can start pursuing a real career.

Seriously, what do you have to lose? A fast food job?
 
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Sanrith Descartes

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TheBeagle said:
You continue holding back your entire life by forcing yourself to take shit jobs because you don't want to do 10 days?? Bro...

I did a lot of stupid shit in my 20's and did the same dance you're doing right now. It sucked and the time it held me back I will never get back. Just bite the bullet dude. Make sure your rent is paid up, buy a fucking bus ticket to NC, do the fucking 10 days, and leave that jail a new man ready to move on with your life. The economy is still roaring and without that warrant hanging over your head you can start pursuing a real career.

Seriously, what do you have to lose? A fast food job?
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This is probably one of the best posts I have read on this board. We ALL do stupid shit when we are young. That is the point of being young. That transition to being a man is partially about sucking it up and being responsible enough to own up what you did as a kid.

I may have, speaking hypothetically of course, done a few weekends in the pokey when I was sowing my wild oats. I look back now and think, hypothetically of course, wow some of that shit I did was stupid. But I learned from it, grew from it and moved forward. Now I have a business and family. You cant move forward, really forward, with chains locking you to past mistakes.

As the man said, get it dealt with so you can move forward. Hypothetically speaking, 10 days ain't that bad. Especially during football season. You can kill time watching football most of the week. Man up and move forward.
 
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Izo

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We should get a poll going - bets on awarded jail time. And a gofundme, wizard is going to need money for makeup and lube.

But yeah, get it over with, come out a better man.
 
TheBeagle

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You aren't gonna get raped or beat up doing 10 days in a county or city lock up. The worst part will be extreme boredom.
 
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pharmakos

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TheBeagle said:
You continue holding back your entire life by forcing yourself to take shit jobs because you don't want to do 10 days?? Bro...

I did a lot of stupid shit in my 20's and did the same dance you're doing right now. It sucked and the time it held me back I will never get back. Just bite the bullet dude. Make sure your rent is paid up, buy a fucking bus ticket to NC, do the fucking 10 days, and leave that jail a new man ready to move on with your life. The economy is still roaring and without that warrant hanging over your head you can start pursuing a real career.

Seriously, what do you have to lose? A fast food job?
Click to expand...

yeah i did three weeks once. sucked but i got over it. at least the jail library had a bunch of Kurt Vonnegut books i could check out.
 
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Ambiturner

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Sanrith Descartes said:
I'm not a lawyer and I am not in NC so take this into consideration. The reason probation is such a shitty deal that DAs push is that if you violate you "can" be sentenced to time equal to what's left of the probation even if the original crime would have given you a much shorter sentence. It's a way of fucking people on the assumption they will violate. So you trade your 30 day jail time for a year of probation and violate 6 months later. It is possible a judge can dunk you for 6 months in jail (the remainder of the probation).

You might want to consider calling legal aid or the public defenders office in the NC county of record before you opt to turn your self in.
Click to expand...

Lol DA's pushing probation as a way to get people more jail time. Where do people come up with this shit?
 
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Zapatta

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1 When you go in bring a few rubber gloves, or fish the ones out of the trash from your cavity search.

2 Make all your new friends a FiFi

3 ?????

4. Profit

 
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pharmakos

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Ambiturner said:
Lol DA's pushing probation as a way to get people more jail time. Where do people come up with this shit?
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every time they successfully get someone on probation they have to spin around 180 degrees in their tall-backed swivel chairs so that no one sees them tapping their fingers together like Mr. Burns while quietly "mwahaha"-ing
 
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Sanrith Descartes

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Ambiturner said:
Lol DA's pushing probation as a way to get people more jail time. Where do people come up with this shit?
Click to expand...
So aside from an easy win in the conviction column and doing less work (ie.. no trial to prep for), you are saying this never enters a DAs mind? What did I say that isnt factually accurate about the possibility of doing the full stretch if you violate?

"THE UGLY

If you mess up, you could end up doing more time than if you took jail/prison up front. If it is Straight Probation (like a DWI), then you can be sentenced up to the length of the probationary term. If it is deferred adjudication, however, you could be sentenced to the full range of punishment for the offense. For example, if you are on deferred adjudication for Possession of 1-4 grams of cocaine for a period of 3 years, and you violate, you could be sentenced to up to 10 years! This is because the range of punishment for that amount of cocaine is up to 10 yrs in TDC."



legas.legrandelaw.com

The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly of Probation

It is a tempting proposition for people when they are charged with a crime: avoid jail and go on probation / deferred adjudication. But is it really that good of a deal? Why it MAY be is a GOOD de…
legas.legrandelaw.com
 
Erronius

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Sanrith Descartes said:
So aside from an easy win in the conviction column and doing less work (ie.. no trial to prep for), you are saying this never enters a DAs mind? What did I say that isnt factually accurate about the possibility of doing the full stretch if you violate?
Click to expand...

It isn't that there aren't a lot of gotchas involved in deferred adjudication and probation. It's the idea that DAs/Prosecutors are standing there, twirling their mustaches like some sort of courtroom BBEG, as they try to maliciously twist the system to give people as much time as possible.

You do understand that with deferred adjudication and probation, they're opening the door to you either being able to walk away with no conviction, or a conviction but with zero jail time, right?

Of course there's issues with DefAdj/Probation, especially in certain states. But if you really believe what you're saying here, then in order for it to be an issue AT ALL, you also have to then believe that recidivism is a fucking given and that people can't fucking help themselves.

Almost every sob story I've heard about probation has people either not taking probation seriously, blowing it off, refusing to change their behaviors and getting busted for something else, or essentially being incapable of NOT violating probation. But you want to blame the DA/Prosecutor for some malign intent?
 
Lendarios

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A go fund me is a great idea.

In worse thing I have wasted money, so helping zombie get his shit cleared sounds like a good thing. Anyone that can set this up?
 
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