QUESTION: What should I expect in terms of a plea offer (from the prosecutor) or sentence (from the judge)?
ANSWER: The plea offer and/or sentence is typically a function of a number of different things:
(1) Age of the accused
(2) Age of the victim (if there is a victim)
(3) The criminal record (GCIC) of the accused
(4) The nature of the offense
(5) The quality/experience of the defense attorney
(6) The jurisdiction where the offense occurred (Fulton County is more lenient than Butts County)
(7) How quickly the accused takes responsibility, especially if there are co-defendant against which the accused can testify
(8) The judge hearing the case (some judges hate burglaries, other hate graffiti)
QUESTION: My friend got arrested in GA with two charges: (1) criminal trespass; and (2) entering auto. He broke a car window, took glasses, papers and teddy bear. How bad is this? He has a public defender, any benefits by getting private defender?
ANSWER: Any felony offense is a problem, and entering auto is a felony offense. With no prior record though, he should get probation, with a fine and some community service. The real problem, which the public defender will never address (which most attorneys will not address) is: Why did your friend commit the offenses. Without the answer to why, some other stupid sh#t (breaking into a vehicle to take a teddy bear qualifies as stupid sh#t) will occur, and he will be back in jail with a violation of probation. So it is just as important to understand why he did it, as it is to resolve it.
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