My son borrowed a car, which he had permission to do so, and ended up driving it to california from georgia. The car's motor blew up. Previously, he had been charged in Georgia with a Misdemeanor marijuania charge, went to court got 6 months probation. While he was driving to california, which no one knew about, he was listed as a missing and endangered person for 3 weeks. It was on the news etc. The police upgraded the car to stolen status, but then when my son called from california, we begged him to return. He came home, and the boy that owned the car, decided to press charges against him. An arrest warrant was put out on him. He recently turned himself in, and now we will go to court soon for him to answer the charges. He was charged with theft by taking in georgia. but on the jail release form, it also states he was a missing person. Is there any way at all to get this case bound over to a civil matter instead of felony? The boy called me after my son was found, said his dad spoke to his lawyer and said he would take $3000 for the car, and would drop the charge. Nothing has happened and now we are going to court for my son's felony charge. We seriously need legal representation, as the soliciter did not help much recently with his booking earlier.
Optional Information: State/Country relating to question: Georgia Already Tried: Talked to different people, but not a lawyer at all. His bond was set at 11,200. We bailed him out with a cash bond.
Good afternoon. I'm sorry to hear about your situation.
First off, you should hire a lawyer as soon as possible. From what you've said, there are several issues going on here and the sooner an attorney can address it, the better off he will be.
Ok, but where is my answer to this question as to which direction you think this could go?
As far as the case goes, there is no way to force the DA to drop charges and make it a civil matter. The DA gets to decide what charges to bring, regardless of what the supposed victim wants.
That said, if the victim in a theft no longer wants to press charges, the DA typically goes along with them.
We are not wanting charges dropped on him, but lessened from a Felony to misdimeanor (sp.?) Is this possible?
It is possible. Frankly, this is a weak case, especially with the "victim" willing to basically give the case away for $3000.
We are aware that we need a lawyer to help us, we are just trying to get information as to which direction to go from here............ The boy let my son use his car repeatedly, and openly admits him letting him borrow the car from him............ so you saying it is a weak case, isn't it the boys word against my husband's and mine, because my son was missing for 3 weeks............
I wrote down the time, and date of the call, and what he said ver batum........
In my opinion, it is a weak case. In situations where a person loaned their car, it becomes unclear when the person's consent was revoked, and if the person who supposedly stole the car was aware they exceeded their consent.
Keep in mind that the state has the burden of proving their case beyond a reasonable doubt.
Essentially, your best argument is the he did not have the intent (which is required to be convicted of theft) to steal the car.
True, I guess the lawyers would figure that out......... but either way, hopefully we can get this handled soon, as they have not set a court date for him yet.......... Is there any other information you could give us that will be helpful to our case, being able to have a little bit more knowledge before we step into court with him...........
I appreciate it......... do you think we should have my son evaluated, as when he got arrested for the pot charge, (Md), he has NEVER been in trouble before, pleaded no lo,,,,,,,,,, and he freaked out for what ever reason, and fled. His cell phone was found on the side of the road, and the police detectives thought he had done harm to himself...............
When he turned himself in , for the warrant on the car, he was still listed as missing and endangered.
Yes, he should get evaluated. There may be a sanity defense, or at least some diminished capacity.
Also, it may garner sympathy from the DA by showing how far out of character this type of behavior is, and make is more likely that the DA will drop charges, or at least reduce them.
When your attorney is hired, he/she should know good psychologists in the area that will be able to assess him.
Ok, well, thank you for your advice as it was very helpful indeed.......... lastly, do you believe he could possibly swing out of this with just probation, and what do you think he should plead in this case?
I think it is extremely likely he will get probation. Until you get a lawyer, you should plead not guilty. Once you get a lawyer, he will go to the DA's office, review the evidence, and be in a position to decide whether or not he can actually beat the case.
ok, I will make sure to show this to my son, do you possibly have any lawyers you could give us information on or possibly recommend in or around the Atlanta area? It would be greatly appreciated.
Unfortunately, the terms of Just Answer do not allow experts to make referrals. However, I can suggest two good websites. I suggest you use www.martindale.com and www.lawyers.com. Both allow you to search for lawyers by geographic area and practice type. Both also rate lawyers.
ok, thank you and have a wonderful evening..... God bless!
You too. Good luck to you and your son. I hope everything works out.
Experience: Experienced in state and federal criminal litigation.