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My son was with a friend at a water park and found an iPod in the bushes, they put it in their locker and then were arrested for theft, they did not read them their rights, should I fight this?
Optional Information: Country relating to Question: United States State (if USA): Colorado Already Tried: I have just been geting the facts from my son and his friend, and wondering if it is worth fighting.
Thank you for your question. Be sure to go ahead and bookmark www.nateanswers.com for future questions.How old is your son?
He is 16
The good thing is that worst case, this will be sealed when he becomes 18 and not found in a public records search. That being said, in the meantime a theft on his record is something that ought to be avoided. If he and his friend truly found it in the bushes, then it's worth fighting the allegation. Even as a juvenile, a theft is almost as bad as a Felony and if he ever gets in trouble as an adult, the prosecutor can bring it up to challenge his honesty. It is certainly worth the effort to fight it.As for the reading of rights, that only would matter if either of them made an incriminating statement. If they did not, then the failure to read their Miranda Rights has no effect on the case.Please remember to only rate my answer when you are 100% satisfied. IF you feel the need to rate "Poor Service" or "Bad Service", please stop and reply to me via the REPLY TO EXPERT button with the issue you have. I am not paid unless I get a rating of 3 to 5 Stars/Smiley Faces. If I have helped you with your question, please give me an appropriate rating so that I get credit for helping you. Thank you!Nate
Do I need to hire a lawyer or just plead not guilty, about 6 months ago, he was walking out of a 7-11 with a magazine that he thought was a free one, he didn't have it hidden, or anything on him, when the clerk saw him leaving he stopped him, my son apologized and gave them the magazine back but they called the police and gave him a ticket, it was dropped to something other than theft, will this be an issue with his current ticket.
He has a history, so it certainly it will affect the way the prosecutor approaches this situation. I do suggest you retain a lawyer to represent him. He definitely needs to have someone advocating for his interests in this situation.
Experience: Over 8 years of criminal defense practice.