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Posts Tagged ‘Petition’

petty theft misdemeanor first time offense.?

March 26th, 2010 4 comments

i stole about 250$ out of a register at work. i got caught and i signed a paper stating that i did steal the money and that i’m sorry. and i am sorry. its my first and last time. but i don’t know what to do. my court date is on the 19th of january in the state of florida. i am really sorry about having done this. and its seems to me i just screwed up my future. does anyone know whats going to happen to me? please help if you can. i know i need to get a lawyer but am i going to go to jail for this? and will this stay on my permanent record? the police officer said i can get it expunged from my record. please explain this to me. i’m in dark here and i’m scared half to death.

Each state has it’s own laws about what kind of offenses and dispositions can be later expunged from your record. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement is the government agency that processes expungment requests, http://www.fdle.state.fl.us/content/getdoc/c83dd888-ef7a-448e-9a96-ba69fc4181f7/Seal-and-Expunge-Home.aspx The website cites the Florida Statute that determines who is eligible to have a charge expunged. It is not easy reading and it is best to have an experienced lawyer explain the criteria.

In some states, the only time a charge can be expunged is when the defendant was not actually convicted. If you are placed on probation, conditional discharge (a nonreporting form of probation) than a conviction is entered and you are ineligible for expungment. But it is a different story if you are placed on court supervision. If you complete court supervision successfully, a conviction is not entered and you can file a petition for expungment. I am not familiar with Florida’s system but it may be similar. It is very important that you understand before you accept a plea agreement whether you will be eligible for expungment at a later date. Talk to an attorney and good luck!