Property Invasion, Damages, Trespass Trespass

[leslieilsel]

My friend was ticketed for trespassing, and I'm just wondering what to expect.

In the morning, he was walking on a strip of pavement that lead to a public high school, which was apparently part of the public school's private property. He's 17, but doesn't attend school. He doesn't work and has no way to get money. This is his first ticket. His parents were willing to pay for the ticket, but he decided to open a trial with plans to defend himself (without a lawyer; not even a court appointed one).


I'm just wondering how likely you think it is that he'll be able to "win" the case, and if he loses, what types of punishment he would recieve. Would the court take into consideration that he has no money and won't make any, or just fine him and expect him to come up with it somehow?
Thanks so much.

 

[CdwJava]

What state was this in, and what code section was he charged with?

- Carl

 

[leslieilsel]

macomb county, michigan. I'm not sure about the code section, I'm sorry

 

[CdwJava]

Not knowing the section makes it difficult to ascertain the penalty. However, I suspect he was accused because he was on school property where he had no right to be. I suspect, also, that there was something more than just wandering accidentally onto the school property.

You say he is 17 ... and not in school .. and not working ...?

Has he been suspended or expelled? Has he been told to stay off campus before? Has he been causing problems on that day or previously?

I doubt he just happened to wander onto school grounds inadvertently and was arrested for being lost. It takes more than that to justify a trespassing arrest.

- Carl

 

[leslieilsel]

No, he wasn't suspended or expelled. He hasn't been in trouble for being on the property before. And no he hadn't been doing anything bothersome that day. My friend suspects the cop even had any interest in him was because he wasn't wearing shoes and it was cold outside. It's a very popular strip for people in the community to walk - it is right by the school running track which the community uses on a daily basis in the warmer months. And he knew where he was going. I get out of school in the morning and take that way home. He was meeting me on the strip. This strip I'm talking about is very hard to identify as school property because even though it leads to the school, it does not lead to a main entrance and starts from a good distance away, so he was a fair distance from the building itself and even the parking lot.

 

[CdwJava]

If the transit was incidental then I doubt that a trespass charge will go forward.

However, this is why the specific code section is important because that would let him (and us) know what elements must be met for a conviction.

- Carl

 

[leslieilsel]

Thanks a lot, sorry about not knowing the code section.