so scared

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sionaa

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The state or country I am talking about is: va

hi ...up untilthe other day things were great for me...i have 3 children and i am a stay at home mom....we live right behind a 7 eleven...the other day my 4 year old little girl was out side playing with our neihbor...and i was inside feeding my 1 year old..then i i had to help my mother... she lives with us and she just got out of the hospital....so she needs help..anyway some one from next door came over to our door and said my little girl was at 7 eleven.. i ran to go get hre..only i had to waIT FOR THE COP TO MAKE SURE IM THE MOM...SO ANYWAY NOW I HAVE TO GO TO COURT...FOR CONTRIBUTING to a delenqeuncy of a minor....i am such a good mom this has never happend before...i dont drink i dont do drugs.....i feel really bad.....i was wondering what does anyone think will happen to me...im so scared for them to lock me up i dont want to be taken away from my kids and my husband.....who will take care of my kids then my husband works full time....can someone please tell me what they think will happen ......you can e mail me at grnidgrl25@aol.com.......im really not a bad person
 
sionaa -- I'm sorry to hear about the problem. Exactly what happened? Usually you don't have such escalation unless something happened of significance. I hear about a neighbor coming over to your house to tell you your daughter ran into the 7-11.

1) Who made the call to the police?
2) Why did you have to "wait" for the police.

I think you know that you should never leave a 4 year old child outside alone. If you have to deal with something inside you should bring your child inside. After all, what if she had run out into the road?

I don't think you should worry about being locked up. That will very likely not happen. You may need to think about what to say if this does go to court and perhaps something can be worked out in advance with the prosecutor. You should be prepared to have answers as to how you will deal with your infant child running around alone and why it won't happen again. Good luck to you.

sionaa said:
The state or country I am talking about is: va

hi ...up untilthe other day things were great for me...i have 3 children and i am a stay at home mom....we live right behind a 7 eleven...the other day my 4 year old little girl was out side playing with our neihbor...and i was inside feeding my 1 year old..then i i had to help my mother... she lives with us and she just got out of the hospital....so she needs help..anyway some one from next door came over to our door and said my little girl was at 7 eleven.. i ran to go get hre..only i had to waIT FOR THE COP TO MAKE SURE IM THE MOM...SO ANYWAY NOW I HAVE TO GO TO COURT...FOR CONTRIBUTING to a delenqeuncy of a minor....i am such a good mom this has never happend before...i dont drink i dont do drugs.....i feel really bad.....i was wondering what does anyone think will happen to me...im so scared for them to lock me up i dont want to be taken away from my kids and my husband.....who will take care of my kids then my husband works full time....can someone please tell me what they think will happen ......you can e mail me at grnidgrl25@aol.com.......im really not a bad person
Click to expand...
 
This is the law:

§ 18.2-371. Causing or encouraging acts rendering children delinquent, abused, etc.; penalty; abandoned infant.

Any person 18 years of age or older, including the parent of any child, who (i) willfully contributes to, encourages, or causes any act, omission, or condition which renders a child delinquent, in need of services, in need of supervision, or abused or neglected as defined in § 16.1-228, or (ii) engages in consensual sexual intercourse with a child 15 or older not his spouse, child, or grandchild, shall be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor

For definitions of those terms see § 16.1-228: http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+16.1-228


§ 18.2-11. Punishment for conviction of misdemeanor.
The authorized punishments for conviction of a misdemeanor are:
(a) For Class 1 misdemeanors, confinement in jail for not more than twelve months and a fine of not more than $2,500, either or both.



The idea here is probably charging you to have allowed that your child was being put into a potentially dangerous situation by not supervising her properly.
Now, willfully usually means intentionally and not negligently, so that would be the first angle of defense. Then I would follow the professor's advice: "I don't think you should worry about being locked up. That will very likely not happen. You may need to think about what to say if this does go to court and perhaps something can be worked out in advance with the prosecutor. You should be prepared to have answers as to how you will deal with your infant child running around alone and why it won't happen again"

Should the prosecutor really be bent on charging you in this situation, which I am not expecting, then you should definitely consult a defense attorney, because such a record could have some serious consequences!
 
anymore answers

7 eleven made the call to the police ....i had to wait for them so they could make sure i was the mother.....the only thing that has me stressed is the fact that i could get locked up....i dont wantto be away from my kids....they really need me....now everyone is saying they wont lock me up.....what else could they do....im not a bad person this was just a really weird day for me.....
 
Well, from what the law says, if you really should be convicted, you could be sentenced to a fine, to probation, to community service or any combination thereof. Jail time for a first time offender without a record would be more than unusual.

What you might worry more about is any investigation by the county or city children services department or however it is called in your place. With them you never know, and if they should start one you should definitely consult an experienced attorney.

But as I said before, in no means it is a sure outcome that you will be convicted for anything. If you feel unsure about this all you might want to consult an experienced attorney and let him deal with the prosecutor.
 
thanks

the only thing that is on my adult record...is right when i turned 18...me and my freind were at a hotel party.....i was 18 she was 16....i got in trouble for conributing then....i had to pay a fine.....no drinking or drugs were involved.....but now im about to turn 26......do you think that will matter.....that was so long ago....and it did not involve any my kids.....oh and child protectine services did come here.....but they said they can not believe i have to go to court over this.....they dont want to do any investagation....they said my kids look very happy and healthy....they were very nice.....she is even going to go to court with me and talk if she needs to......so do you think from the charge i got 9 years ago will change anything.....i sure do hope not......anything but jail......i have a court appointed lawyer...she will be calling me back at the beginning of the week, after she goes over the court files......thanks for helping me feel a little better
 
well, that is good news. Children Protective Service's opinion here is very important. If they think this whole issue is overblown, your attorney probably will be able to convince the prosecutor to dismiss charges.
 
thanks again

well so you think i should be ok......everyone says that they are not going to lock me up for something like this.....i mean i dont know what will be running through the judges head.......im going tojuvinile court......see my charge when i turned 18 is what bothers me as i said in my last post.....should i be botherd about that....im so sorry to annoy you.....im a worry wart..... :eek: ....well thanks again for making me feel better.....how do you know so much anyway.......just wondering :p thank you....undefinedundefined
 
anyone else

hi does anyone else have any input....i just dont want to go to jail....i mean i am not a criminal and i dont want my children to look at me and think that.....everyone says im not going to go to jail....i still breastfeed my baby...she would go nuts...my husband works 24/7 ..who would be there for my kids....i mean i just keep thinking of all this stuff....i think of all the other things that are alot worse than my case too....i dont know....mabey somemore people can give me some good news....im so scared....my kids really are my life...this whole thing was never meant to happen.....
 
Some questions not addressed...

Some questions that I haven't seen asked about this situation though that may make a difference in the outcome...

How old was the neighbor that your 4 year old was playing with?

Was this other child old enough to be consider a "babysitter" (some states 10, some 12) where you would have had reason to believe that your child was under adequate supervision while not in your direct presence?

or, Was this child younger in age who would also need supervision, and if so, was this other child's parent present when you had originally allowed your child out to play with the other child?

These are some of the questions you should consider prior to court as well, because they will give insight into why you allowed your child outside to play without your direct visual supervision especially considering your proximity to a convenience store which by nature would be located on or near heavy traffic (either vehicular and/or pedestrian).

I'll admit I am unfamiliar with VA law (I'll leave that to those who are), I do find it odd that you are answering to "contributing to the deliquency" rather than "child endangerment" or a neglect charge (which to me would seem more appropriate charges to file, in such a matter) but that may be to your advantage in your defense. ;)

I agree with the advice you have been given based on the information you have provided. You will not likely recieve any jail time. Maybe fined, probation, etc. but that would be the worst based on what I've read of your story.

Good luck :)
 
ok the little girl is like...i think 12 but she has a mind of a 5 year old.....and her father was also outside....and we live in a coldasac( or however you spell that)...right behind 7 eleven....i can get ther in under a min....there is a trail that leads to it....so thank god there are no roads she had to cross at anytime....just a short trail.....so i dont know what is going to happen.... but i dont see any reason why they would put me in jail....
 
I would not worry about going to jail. I would think probation, fine, would be all you faced. I would be worried more about child protective service more than anything but with a first time offense I would not think anything would come out of it. You would be a lot better off with an attorney. Good luck!
 
well i did get a lawyer a court appointed one.....the child protected services are saying im not going to go to jail....they didnt..want to even do an investagation....well everyone i have told this story to say no way im not ging to jail... but i cant help but be scared, you know......like i said i love my children...and im not a bad mom...no way i try to do the best i can.....ive never done drugs or drank....well i guess ill see........thanks for helping me out...
 
Singel mom enlisting in military

[SIZE=3]I am a singel mom enlisting in the navy and I have to sign custody of my daughter over before I get shipped out.... any one got any thoughts or advice for me?[/SIZE] :D
 
does anyone think they would give any time for this.....i mean what if they throw me in jail for a few days....do you think that will happen....im so scared.... im going to go and they are going to throw me in jail to teach me a lesson...i mean i dont know how the law works....i mean any time away from my kids would kill me....
 
ok i get on here everyday to see if any one has wrote me back, it really makes things easier for me hereing the good advice people are giving me....this whole thing is really making me a mess i cant hardly eat i cant sleep....and i dont go to court untill june 6th....so please dont think im crazy... i just dont want to spend one min. in jail away from my kids..... so what does anyone think......i promise i wont ask no more.......thanks for dealing with me....
 
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