Criminal Trials, Hearings Charged with the wrong offense

M

MDoe12

New Member
Hello,

I am 20 years old and I was recently charged with an MIP (minor in possession) for a security guard at a venue witnessing me taking a sip of a drink and calling the police. However, when I went in for my arraignment, the judge said "contributing alcohol to minors is a 4th degree felony" and it said on my file that I committed giving or serving alcohol to minors, which is incorrect completely (I'm a minor myself!). When I told the judge that it was an MIP and I am only 20 years old, he was like "oh wow, you don't want the first offense! Let me change that for you". But when I go on the public court case records, it still says, "selling or giving alcohol to minors". Is there a way I can get my whole charge dropped completely since they are accusing me of the wrong thing and failing to correct it?
 
You now need to return to court when next scheduled and request the judge to appoint a public defender to represent you.

Or, you can hire your own attorney.

Whatever you do, don't try to fix this mess. You don't know how, and as you can see, it's only getting worse the more you try to repair it.

The won't listen to you, unless you're saying, "I'm guilty!"

Otherwise, I suggest you get some kind of real lawyer ASAP, before they send you to prison for something unrelated to what may have occurred.

BTW, it happens everyday a court is open in the USA, hundreds of times over!!!!
 
Agreed. A public defender should make quick work if this for you. No prosecutor or judge wants to waste time dealing with this.
You may not get it thrown out, but can at least get it amended to the appropriate charge and gets things settled.
Based on just the info you gave I suspect a very strong likelihood that you can beat the charge fairly easily.
 
They said I do not have a right to a public defender or counsel since it is a misdemeanor and there is no chance of jail time for the offense. I am hoping the police officer will just not show up. Thanks for your help!
 
MDoe12 said:
They said I do not have a right to a public defender or counsel since it is a misdemeanor and there is no chance of jail time for the offense. I am hoping the police officer will just not show up. Thanks for your help!
Click to expand...

Your problem is that you said the court records still reflect the charge as a felony.

I suggest be very alert to what you hear and see when you next return to court.

By now you should have received some document reflecting the actual charges that have been lodged against you.

If you don;t have such a paper(s), you might want to inquire.
 
Did the police do any kind of evaluation of you to determine if you had consumed alcohol it were under the influence?
Did you admit to drinking alcohol?
Is the officer reliant upon the observations and statements of the security guard?
If the security guard fails to show, what is the officer able to testify to?
No need to answer.... Just things to think about if you should find yourself in court alone.
 
And in addition, there should be a code or ordinance which you have been accused of violating. That will allow you to determine exactly what the charges are supposed to be. You should look to see if this is written on the MIP summons.
 

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