Parole, Probation PLEASE HELP...1st probation violation but it wasnt even me!

[eugene119]

please help...i really dont know what to do...

Im currently on probation for Misdemeanor petty theft/larceny and i've been put on informal probation for 3 yrs. i did the whole work program, served time and have been trouble free since then for almost 2 yrs...with just 1 yr left in my probation sentence remaining.

The bad news starts here...i recently lost my organizer and it had my california ID and personal info in it. no c.c. just my ID and some address and contact info. I just found out today when i was reporting my missing ID card that someone had already used my ID by assuming my identity when getting caught stealing at a macy's dept store. they were charged, arrested and cited and released with a court date to appear by the end of june. they actually got away with looking like and being me!??

i couldnt believe it... so i did my research and went to the macys to ask some questions and they showed me the tape and report. the thing that freaks me out rite now the most is that when i saw the pic and video tape at the macys today of the person they supposely arrested impersonating me, the video and blurry mug shot picture they took really did look like me??? they didnt show the guy actually stealing, the guy went into a fitting room, came back out and left the store and then got caught by security. i guess while he was in the fitting room he stuffed his bag filled with $65 dollars worth of merchandise and got caught. im really scared because when u look at the footage and mug shot they took of the person, he REALLY does look like me!??! he fits being asian, male, black hair and glasses. its eerry to the bone.

i didnt know what to do... i have been doing a lot of research online and i cannot afford an attorney for something like this...

what can i do to clear my name that i wasnt him?
if im a victim of identity theft and the guy is still out there what now?
and since this current mayhem is directly related to the terms of violating my informal probation what is going to happen??

im so scared and nervous rite now i dont know what to do...

the only proof that i have that it wasnt me that they arrested is a friend i was chilling with all day on my day off!!

i spoke with a lawyer on a free consultation and he said it would cost over a $1,000 to take this situation.

can someone with any legal experience or background in this help me??

my credibility is good with my employer and they and my friends and family know that i wouldnt do this, but what really irks me is that the person who took my identity looks really similar to me...even knew my address and personal info. i dont know what to do???

do i have any chance to fight this?

what happens if we take it all the way to a lawyer and then i lose because the person on tape and picture passes for looking like me?

please help...

what happens if this DOES goes against me and my probation violation???

this sucks so bad.... i cant even sleep just thinking about it...

please if there is anyone out there that can help me...i would sincerely appreciate any feedback...

 

[cmlzip]

Well I wouldn't worry about it too much. You were only on unsupervised probation and you only committed another misdemeanor. I don't know why the judge gave you 3 years of probation for the 1st offense though, unless you already had something on your record.

Now, as far as this guy assuming your identity. When they arrested "this guy" at Macy's, they likely took a polaroid of him as well. If they didn't take the polarioid but security looked at your license and he is going to say that the person on the license matches the person that was in front of him on that day, then you'll have a tough time beating this. The judge will ultimately make the final ruling but it sounds to me as if you are very afraid because you got caught doing the same crime twice. Also, when "you/he" was arrested, you were asked to sign the ticket to appear. Now, you stated that you "recently" lost your organizer with your ID in it so it would be near impossible for this "other person" to completely imitate your handwriting style. So, whatever papers you signed when you were arrested will be analyzed by the judge's eye and that, in my opinion, is how they'll ultimately catch you in a lie (if you actually did do the thing yourself). The other question that begs itself here is what the odds are that another asian male had the opportunity to steal your stuff and the guy looks amazingly like you (asian to boot). Also, you say you couldn't afford an attorney, so what would be this guy's motive to assume "your" identity if you're broke?

Just be careful with what you say in court but ultimately you were on probation for a petty misdemeanor crime and you/he did another petty misdemeanor crime. The judge will likely give you more community service, fines and supervised probation. He may be pressed by Macy's also to give you 30 days in jail. It's all up to the evidence and the judge's decision.

 

[eugene119]

heres the thing...

they gave me 3 years informal cuz it was a felony grand larceny dropped down to misdameanor theft and larceny with informal probation for 3yrs.

so no matter what i do i think im pretty much screwed...

do u know how long i would have before i report this to my probation officer?

how much would something like this normally cost in legal fee's... im definitely shopping around now.

does that mean that my probation period might be extended? revoked? u say supervised now? no chance in just finishing out my original probation? any help on my current situation would help and i appreciate the reply back cmlzip. are you a lawyer in Ca?

 

[cmlzip]

Well, you say that you were on 3 years of unsupervised probation for a grand larceny that was plead down to misdemeanor theft. This is not a big deal. Always remember that the only thing that counts is what you were actually convicted of and not what was charged or plead down. The fact is that you were only convicted of a misdemeanor theft. Unsupervised probation is not harsh at all. Now, I do understand that there are classes that they make you attend if you are convicted of theft crimes. He may likely put you in one of those classes. He will probably also give you more community service, a fine and put you on extended 1 year supervised probation (where you visit a probation officer once a month and pay him a monthly payment decided by the judge).

And no, I'm not an attorney in California but i hope I helped.

 

[eugene119]

cmlzip ur are awesome for even taking the time to reply back...

since then i've spoke with a few lawyers and they say it would cost anywhere from 5-8 grand to take care of this case...money i just dont have....

im thinking of just contacting a P.D. and explain it to him....

do u know if they offer classes for things like this in california??

anything u know that could help me through this tough time would be greatly appreciated...

thanks again cml...

i really do appreciate it...

 

[cmlzip]

I'm sure the classes are offered in a large state like California. There was a user on this forum that actually had to take those classes also. $5-8000 for a lawyer for this offense, in my opinion, is proposterous. Public defenders are fine when confronted with hot and cold charges such as these. Let one of them handle it. Also, many judges will actually try and help these public defenders just starting out.