Help!! My teen has been charged. Any advise

[Chris2597]

Again, thank you for the replies. We are going to ask the attorney about all of the options....My main concern is that this will follow him throughout his life.
His attitude started changing when he hit 11th grade and got progressively worse. I thought it was just typical teenage hormones and him trying to achieve some independence from us, but about the same time I noticed new friends....looking back now I am sure it was all connected. We grounded him, took his truck away and tried talking to him about his changed attitude but nothing seemed to work........we even visited with a family therapist a couple of times to find out what was bugging him and why the change....nothing worked....
I actually think this has been a major jolt into reality for him because ever since he recieved the ticket he has been back to the old wonderful child we all loved. He has dropped all of the new friends and is hanging around with all of the kids he has been friends with for years, checks in several times a day when out, makes curfew, is polite and fun to be around again....I am thanking God daily for the return of my son.
I do believe this was a lot of youthful experiementation but now he is facing the music.
So in a way this may have very well saved his life, because he is certainly back on track.....

 

[Chris2597]

I forgot to answer a question from one of the posters as to why he was pulled over in the first place.....
It was a case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time...
He was on his way to school, but stopped at MCDonalds for breakfast....by the time he got out of MCD's traffic was terrible so he turned into an older neighborhood (with mostly retirees) to turn around so he would have a light to make his turn into traffic....well a man walking his dog saw him and according to the officer the neighborhood had been experiencing break ins recently and the police had told the people "if you see strange cars in the neighborhood call".....about that time a school police car drove by and the man flagged him down and said he had seen a young guy in a red truck drive through the neighborhood and turn around.....well the officer found my son turning into the school parking lot and pulled him over. My son explained what he was doing in the neighborhood.....well....my son turned 18 two days before and he didnt, nor did I realize he needed to renew his drivers license /..so it was two days expired. The officer noticed an extra backpack on the floor of his truck and asked to look in it.....that is where the three beers were....so the search was on in the truck and the pipe was found under the passenger seat.

 

[TIGGERSMOM]

Posession of parphenalia is a crime in most states. BTW if it has been used and there is residue he CAN be charged with posession.

If he was pulled over for speeding, running a red light, excessive noise etc... if the officer suspects alcohol or smells mariuana that is probable cause. You may argue how did he suspect it but the fact that a pipe and alcohol were found would make a court believe his cause was valid.

If he did not give permission for a search and the above was suspected. He could site for drivng while endangered or impaired and have the vehicle towed. Part of this process is an inventory of the vehicle - bingo caught again.

If you don't want to be charged - don't have it with you. If you want to use it get your own place and take your risks there.

As I tell my DS - MY House - My rules. And let me see where on your birth certificate it says life is fair.

 

[Stepharoonie!]

No advice, but good luck!

 

[Dog]

Everything your son is being charged with in the state of MA would be considered a misdemeanor. However I dont know what local of state laws there are to cover this in your state. The drug paraphernalia can be almost anything and not just pipes...(ie bottle caps,perfume sample bottles,cans crushed with a hole in middle,straws,needles etc....anything that can be used to administer drugs). But it is not the object itself that is illegal. Usually these objects have residue. This residue if it is a contolled substance makes the object illegal and thus is covered by state laws.
Possesion of Alcohol or transporting alcohol as a minor is self explanatory. I have heard all the excuses before (and so has the judge) as to how the alcohol is in ones possesion so no matter what the real reason is if alcohol is present and nobody there is 21 then they face the consequences.
I didnt see if he was charged with driving with a expired license. Again in this state it is an arrestable offense.
Now as far as the stop is concerned. The information you gave us was that it came down to basically as a suspicious car driving in a neighborhood. Since this call was not created by a Officer but by the public then IMHO the officer has a right to stop the car and inquire as to why he was there. When you are pulled over operating a car you must tell the officer who you are (license,permit.I.D.). ALSO the operator of the car is responsible for eveyone and everything in the car unless the registered owner is present. Thus the officer noticed the expired license and gives him probable cause to either cite or arrest. you stated the officer noticed the backpack and GAVE the officer permission to search it. If this is the case then your son gave up his right of privacy and anything found of an illegal nature is your sons responsibility.
However all infractions cited above are NOT serious in nature and thus the court will work out whatever they can to get to some agreement of punishment that will be fair to your son.So I agree with everybody who said to bring a lawyer at the time of the hearing. The lawyer and Prosecutor would have a meeting before the hearing and come up with a agreement and then present it to the judge. The judge usually goes by the individuals record and then will either go along with the recommendation or deny it.
If you suspect that your son might be abusing drugs or alcohol you are usually correct in your suspicions. Do not ignore them and do not go with the attitude of NOT MY KID WOULD DO THAT. I hear this all the time and guess what...it can happen in any family any where at any time. And yes it has happened in my family as well as my freinds family. Take these signs and incidents as warnings to you and your family and be grateful that this is the only thing bad that happened so far, because chemical abuse if not caught early has a rapid downward spiral where thay will eventually hit flat bottom and then it is too late for anyone to help. Good luck to you.

 

[Disney Doll]

Get a lawyer. Let your son be scared. Let him be very scared. Let him see the consequences of his behavior. One of the problems I feel with society today is that no one takes personal respoonsibility anymore...it's always someone else's fault. Bottom line...your kid sounds like he started taking a dangerous turn about a year or two ago and it has finally caught up to him. The beer wasn't his...I doubt it. The pipe wasn't his...well, maybe not, but it belonged to someone he hangs around with if it was in his car, and therefore, it's just a matter of time before it IS his pipe.

Fear is a great motivator. You have a golden opportunity to scare your kid straight. Use it.

 

[Chris2597]

I am sure that the beer belonged to my son..I am not sure about the pipe....I am sure he is not innocent about how the pipe was used and very well could have sampled the contents....There was the obvious MJ smell in the pipe, but nothing left. ..From what I can get from his story.....An older college aged friend bought the beer for them over the weekend, he had three cans left from what he bought and he took it with him, placing it in an extra back pack in his car. He said the pipe belonged to a kid that he gave a ride home to....I dont know that I buy the story, but bottom line is if it is in your car.....the law says it is yours.He did not give permission for the officer to search his backpack or car but when the officer brought his keys into the principal, telling her that I was on my way to take him to get his license renewed (before he could drive again)....he also told her that my son did not give him permission to look in the backpack....well she said this is the school parking lot and i dont need his permission.....she opened the back pack and searched the car with the officer standing there. He was not ticketed for an expired drivers license. The officer called me at home and I said he would not be permitted to drive until it was renewed...t.hat it was an oversight. I told him I would be at the school within 10
minutes. We are hiring an attorney, but my son will pay for the fee plus any fines he may incur. Of course we will have to pay initially but if it takes him 5 years to pay us back....he will....I want him to learn from this and not make the same mistakes over and over all of his life. I agree...that too many parents buy their kids out of these things and the problems continue....I dont want this.
The principal at his high school is very nice and told me that typically kids get community service, a small fine and deferred adjudication(sp?) if they meet their probation and dont get into trouble again and it is a first time offense.. Will deferred adjudication show up on a criminal history check?

 

[dianeschlicht]

I am scared that this will effect him for future employment and school.

As well it could, but if he is a smart kid, he knows this,and will figure out the consequences better if he is made to hire his own attorney and pay the court fines or whatever is needed. Court will be a humbling experience for him. Be there for him and support him emotionally, but don't judge him or defend him. You really don't know how guilty or inocent he really is. Just be emotional support, and let him "learn" what he needs to from the experience.

 

[binny]

wish I had adovice for you but wanted to offer support! (((hugs)))

 

[Chris2597]

My husband called our attorney friend and he asked us to fax him the summons asap. He said he will speak with the prosecutor. He is concerned that my sons car was searched illigally. My son did not give permission for him to search the vehichle and he said that an expired license does not warrant a search. The officer and the high school principal did the search. He is also looking at other avenues to take.
Bottom line is my son had some things that are not legal for his age (the three beers) and not legal for anyone (pipe).
I will keep you all posted.

 

[Hillbeans]

I thought they could search a car if they "suspected" something were to be in there. He did find something illegal.

Unfortunately you already know what you're dealing with so I find no need to beat a dead horse. His license was expired, he had beer and a pipe. I'm hoping that he doesn't get anything on his permanent record, however maybe this is a wake up call for him to turn things around. I wish you the best of luck.

 

[Lewski709]

Make sure to have the lawyer ask for the record to be expunged when he turns 18. That means, gone...not held over his head for jobs/criminal checks/etc for his future.

 

[Chris2597]

Problem is he turned 18 a couple of days before all of this happened.....but the summons still notes him as a minor and was sent to the parents of....... He is still a minor as far as the underage poss. of alchohol is concerned, but it seems they are still treating him as a minor on all counts.

 

[Chris2597]

Thank you to everyone that responded.
We have the attorney working on it. He is a friend of the family.....We were so embarrassed by all of this we didnt call him immediately which was a mistake. One of his associated deals mostly with criminal law and is helping with the case. He feels that since my son has never been in any trouble he will not be too harshly dealt with and most likey will get deferred adjudication. The two lawyers are meeting with the prosecutor before the court date and are trying to work out an agreement which would mean that we would not have to go to court. Our lawyer said that the JP courts are so jammed with this sort of thing, which is good for us as they are inclined to try to work some of the cases out before the court date.
This has definetly been a wake up call for my son and also for us.
I will post the outcome of the case

 

[Mimi Q]

Thanks for the update. I remember your original post.

 

[Big V]

Thanks for the update Chris. I hope your son learned a good lesson from this!

 

[zurgswife]

Good Luck!

 

[EsmeraldaX]

Sent you a PM.

 

[Minnesota!]

SOrry about all the hassle you are going through.

Wanted to tell you real quick about my brother.

He has been in and out of prison/jail/JDC since he was 12 (he is 22 now). Everything from drug charges to burgulary (what he is in prison for now). However, he applied for college - a good 4 year school in Wisconsin - last time he was out. He was accepted and granted financial aid, even with his background. Of course, he didn't keep his nose clean and went back to prison for 10 months, so school is not happening, but I wanted to let you know that with what happened to your son, doesn't mean he is going to be denied schooling or financial aid.

And, I think that since he is 18, your son should be hiring the attorney himself, paying himself, and doing everything else related to this by himself. If you help him, it teaches him that he can do this and get away with it.

Trust me, my brother has told me time and time again if our parents had been a little more strict with him, he probably wouldn't have tried to get away with so much, but they continually stood behind him and bailed him out and such..

Just my 2 cents...

Good luck!

 

[Chris2597]

We were going to make our son pay us back for the attorney fees, fines and whatever else financially comes from this...However, our wonderful attorney told me that he will not charge my dh and I but will bill my son directly. He said he is 18, decided to do the crime, now he should be financially responsible. He is a friend and said that the cost will be minimal but he wants ds to understand that behavour like this is costly in more ways than one. He said if it takes him two years to pay it back.....that will be fine.....but he wants it to be a lesson.