Need advise..plz help!

[SittinDuck]

Hello all,

I'm new to all of this, and welcome any advice you folks may have!

Long story short..

13 years ago I went to walmart, with a family member who decided to deprive the store of some merchandise (50-500) I knew at the time what his intentions were, and asked that he not commit this theft anywhere around me, so as not get me involved with his actions. I know the right thing to was to try and stop him, but he was a grown man, and I felt at the time that I should not get involved. Well, as I walked out of the store I was detained, and shortly after he exited, he was detained. He was found to have several Cd's concealed into his pants, and 2 cordless phones that were both placed into a shopping bag by him. I did not have any stolen property on me, and was accused of being a accessory by the L.P agent, who stopped me.

I made my court date, and was advised by my "Court appointed Lawyer" that the prosecuting attorney would not accept any deals from me period. At the time I was not financially able to seek legal representation, and feared that my Lawyer had better things to do at the time, and had no real interest in helping my situation. My Lawyer advised me that if I plead "Not Guilty" I could face the full sentence for this crime if found guilty for any reason. At the time I was raising my daughter, and worried that something could go wrong and I would not be able to care for her due to jail time. End result, I was scared and plead "No Contest" I served a small amount of probation, community service, and was released with no further issues.

Keep in mind that this occurred 13 years ago, and I am now 38, I have not have any issue with LE reguarding criminal activities. From the time I was able to drive at 16 years of age, I have only had 1 non-moving violation for expired tags, nothing else. I don't drink or do drugs...only downfall seems to be this little round can of skoal that ask for a pinch every now and again.


Currently, I'm signed up to take the O.P.A.T.A academy in Ohio, and fear that I will end up barking up a lot of trees because of this...of course that is if I can get PAST THE RUN!! :P

Guys, this academy will be paid out of my pocket, and I don't want to waste anyone's time at any police department if this is going to be a major issue. Can anyone give me advice on this? Will this be an issue for me when it comes time to look for auxiliary work at a small county department? I know every department is different in their hiring process, but I think what I'm looking for here is an overall answer that some of you may or may not know about in your personal or work related experience.


Thanks in advance all

[Roger Dat]

If you couldnt afford a lawyer then a public defender should have been appointed to represent you. You were 25 not 15, you knew what was going on so maybe you did play a part. If this is the whole story you may be able to get around it but it better be the whole story. Most departments do and in depth background they will talk to the other person involved, read the court documents and maybe give you as poly.


If your telling the truth then no reason not to try provided its not an auto DQ with any department you want to apply to.

P.S. you need ADVICE not ADVISE

[Kimble]

You were 25 not 15, you knew what was going on so maybe you did play a part. If this is the whole story you may be able to get around it but it better be the whole story.

I pretty much would have posted the same thing as written above. While 25 is way past being old enough to know better than being mixed up in shoplifting (whether you were the actual thief or just a participating party), if the story you told is the whole story, it may not be insurmountable. This will be explored fully by any department you apply to, so if this isn't the full story, it will be found out during the background investigation process, and you'll shoot any shot at employment in LE completely if the whole truth isn't being told.

Be prepared to explain not just what you did, but how you as an adult 15 years later have moved passed this with responsible behavior and maturity. You may have some tough questions to answer about this during interviews because of the fact that you weren't a kid when this happened, so be prepared for that, too.

[SittinDuck]

If you couldnt afford a lawyer then a public defender should have been appointed to represent you. You were 25 not 15, you knew what was going on so maybe you did play a part. If this is the whole story you may be able to get around it but it better be the whole story. Most departments do and in depth background they will talk to the other person involved, read the court documents and maybe give you as poly.


If your telling the truth then no reason not to try provided its not an auto DQ with any department you want to apply to.

Thanks for the reply! I was appointed a Court Lawyer. Like I said, this guy really seemed to have other things going, and did nothing, or advised me of very little. Not to mention, I did not know heads from tails at that time.

I have read the report and it does in fact say that the LP agent included me in her report because I was with him, and she felt that because of that I had something to do with this. Thinking back now, I feel it would have been hard to prove mt side because of the knowledge I had, but chose not to get involved or shoplift with him. Overall, because I was with him I take on the same charges.

Thanks again for your advice!

[bllewellyn]

Perhaps your relative would've listened had you been firm enough with him to tell him, "DON'T DO IT!!!", rather than ask him not to. It's also a wise idea in general not to affiliate yourself with anyone who's gonna violate any laws, family or not.

[Kimble]

Perhaps your relative would've listened had you been firm enough with him to tell him, "DON'T DO IT!!!", rather than ask him not to. It's also a wise idea in general not to affiliate yourself with anyone who's gonna violate any laws, family or not.

I think after 15 years he's learned this, so why berate him further? Unless there's a time machine handy, there's not much he can do to change what happened a decade and a half ago.

[SittinDuck]

Perhaps your relative would've listened had you been firm enough with him to tell him, "DON'T DO IT!!!", rather than ask him not to. It's also a wise idea in general not to affiliate yourself with anyone who's gonna violate any laws, family or not.

You are correct in what you are saying. I have been over this a million times in my head, and to be honest with you, I was more so concerned about the situation I was in at the time. It was one those things where I just said..I'm out of here! I don't affiliate myself with dishonest people either. He happened to be family member who had a blatant disregard for my request to not shoplift at the time.

On another note... I spoke with a Chief of police out here this morning, and explained the situation. He asked that I come to the department to speak with him about what happened. If the investigation found the accounts to be valid, then I could possibly get an offer for an auxiliary position...PROVIDED I pass the 1.5 mile run in 12.25..UGH!!! funny thing is that a lot of people here all say "Hey, come see us when you pass the run"

Thanks for the advice!!

[Sierra]

There is no point in seeing you if you can't meet the standards. It just wastes everyones' time.

[SittinDuck]

There is no point in seeing you if you can't meet the standards. It just wastes everyones' time.

According to O.P.A.T.A I do meet the standards, and most departments all over require at least 10 years to have passed on misdemeanors in order to "Meet the standards" and most misdemeanors are over looked on a case by case basis. I'm sure the people I've talked to today would not of had an issue with telling me NO, you don't meet the standards, and your situation is an auto DQ if that was in fact the case. I hardly think telling me to come in and talk with him is going to "Waste everyone's time"

Thanks for taking the time to post your advice tho..

[mcsap]

You should see if you can get your record expunged. It doesn't mean totally gone but it certainly is better than it being fair game for a defense attorney to make light of if you are testifying in court on a theft case.

"...Officer Jones , isn't it true that you were arrested for Retail Theft as an adult and pled no contest ? "

BTW, a NC plea is the SAME as a guilty plea.

[SittinDuck]

You should see if you can get your record expunged. It doesn't mean totally gone but it certainly is better than it being fair game for a defense attorney to make light of if you are testifying in court on a theft case.

"...Officer Jones , isn't it true that you were arrested for Retail Theft as an adult and pled no contest ? "

BTW, a NC plea is the SAME as a guilty plea.

You bring up an excellent point! I have a Lawyer working with me on this as we speak. One of the main concerns with my situation is that it could be brought up in a court setting, and I could have to listen to a Lawyer questioning me about this...not good!

This question has been brought up today, and my response to it was that it will be expunged within 6 weeks. Although my information will be held private to the public, it will not be held private to a L.E. agency doing my background as I'm sure you know.

Also I plead "no contest" (Which I understand is is also a guilt plea) under mental duress due to lack of financial resources to pay for adequate legal assistance, and with the understanding that I will be able to have this Misdemeanor expunged shortly after..did not happen. As I investigated my options further, I was informed that there would be a waiting period to do so. Looking back, I should have plead not guilty due to the fact that there were many inconsistencies stated in the loss prevention agents report. Not to mention the fact that the L.p. agent stated that they would not prosecute anyone else but the main offender who actually committed the theft. I was taken on the officers discretion only..unfortunately it was all to late for me.


Thank you for the advice Sir!!!