Would you have taken the plea had you known… ?
One of the comments that irritates me the most is “well you should have thought of that before you…”.
It was once said to me by a police officer who had just denied every single one of the proposed residences on the list I provided her because it ran afoul of their city’s residency restriction. It had been my third list of more than a dozen rentals, generated after my third trip going around the city with a realtor trying to find a compliant place to live that didn’t look like it was too close to a “place where children congregate”. I was quickly realizing the effort was pointless, because EVERYWHERE was too close to a school bus stop or place where children congregate. As I pleaded with her for guidance because I was days away from being homeless. She just looked at me and said, “well you should have thought of that before you looked at what you did.”
No, actually, I couldn’t have though about the residency restriction because it didn’t exist until years after my offense. At the time I took my plea, nearly 20 years ago, it was completely unforeseeable that someone would come up with that! Had I known that every year the screws would be tightened and new restrictions would be added to the list, I would have never taken my plea.
Which brings us to a poll (which you can answer by clicking on the “Yes” or “No” below). Results will be shared after we have collected a meaningful sample.
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Fed govt and state kept their ends: i didnt even have a lawyer:Probation.
Total contact with feds was three letters and one meeting and one appearance. never seen the inside of a cell: cooperated fully: never had an issue: passed background checks: never had anyone over to work or home. Mailed a questionnaire. Full career volunteered and everything. 24 years no problem: Come to florida: life is OVER for me.
ABSOLUTELY NOT!!! My fiance took a plea 27 years ago because he was told it was his best option, even though he didnt do anything, he relied on his lawyer to do his job.
Back then there was NO registation. No redicency restrictions. NO having stuff on your licence. Nothing
If had known that this was Conceivable…..would have NEVER took a plea.
My so called “Plea” was a full guilty plea. WHY you ask? $$$$$ Bonding out twice ( law enforcement kept re-arresting me every time I bonded out until a judge intervened ).
So after bonding out twice and then my lawyer running me AND my parents out of money, I was left ( Or so I thought ) with only two choices, Plead guilty or come up with another $25,000.00.
I did not have the money so threw myself on the mercy of the court and that was a HUGE mistake. 50% of the charges were bogus, the other 50% were true.
Anyway, the judge went crazy giving me a sentence that cause my attorney to ask to be excused and started puking in the hallway. I was NEVER advised by my lawyer OR the judge that if I did not have the money, I could get a public defender.
Once I got sent away, someone helped me write up an appeal to the judge concerning not being offered a public defender. She basically just sent it back with a HUGE RED DENIED !
So if I knew what I knew now, I don’t care what it took, I would have fought until there was not breath left in my lungs.
If I had gone to trial I can GUARANTEE I would have been offered a deal of just probation instead of the trial.
Having said all that, I / we never agreed to the registry when we made any kind of plea. I am not asking for any of the charges to be taken away even though many of them are B.S. but would be happy to just be able to live in peace.
Not sure how these judges cannot see we are basically under probation and still will not call it punishment. AND they are allowing us to have to pay to register ( Some places do )
it is punishment,its retroactive,its illegal and if it affected them they would agree..Becuase it doesnt they laugh all the way to the stand..hell no I wouldn’t have taken a plea 20 years ago for the bullcrap punishment today.
Man, I took the plea vs spending 70 months in jail for BS. Some idiot on kik sends me a pic that I didn’t even ask for and I’m the one in trouble. Anyway I was railroaded because I agreed to 5 yrs of probation , but my lawyer never explained to me that it’s 5 years X 2 . Now I’m closing in on the halfway mark and I’m gonna be trying to get early termination of my probation, but I’m scared they will deny me. I’ve heard people say they always deny sex off probation termination in Florida. I don’t know if it’s true but I’m scared to death they will deny it. I can’t do 5 more years of this living in fear all the time. Scared when the doorbell rings, I jump when my phone rings. If probation asks me to come early I freak out expecting to go to jail. I’ve spent the last 5 years afraid of everything and I want this nightmare to end. But even with all this I would still take the plea rather then spend all that time on prison being raped or assaulted daily.
@ Lost…
This? …”I’ve heard people say they always deny sex off probation termination in Florida.” This is NOT true. Every Judge is different just like everyone who has a legal history is different.
Suggestions?
— If you had to attend Therapy I suggest you get a letter from them stating your low risk, blah blah blah.
— HIRE A LAWYER
— Also know that if you are denied for w/e reason that you can try again a year from the date of denial ( unless that has been changed )
Good luck to you.
Lost I have a friend I was in group with who was in the exact same situation as you 10 years probation. He early terminated in 5 years and has since left the state. So have faith
Was it brought up during your court hearings that you never asked for a pic and why wasn’t the person who sent it in trouble as well? And if it wasn’t mentioned – why?
Hell no i would not.
Of couse my atty failed to infom me of all the reperesussions. of a deal.
its not about justice and fairness, its about cash. as registered offenders we are the low hanging fruit. easy for municipilaries to add more and more restrictions on the get more of us sanctioned and continually punished for an ever growing list of stupid laws.
The attys fill their coffers with cash and recovnition of heroes to the people, they are only looking to fund their secretive sting operationsthat the sheriffs and other law enforcenemt love to provide. like my friend who got arrested cause a renter in his duples updated her licence plate and he did not know.
or myself who foolishly paid as a retainer Four (4) times the amt of all the other sttys i interviewed. my atty ‘cheney’ was so involved in providing pro bono services to a woman that killed he own kid, my funds wew used to that end and he did little to help me. im
n fact he threw my case to a non member of his law firm as a freebie.
prison systems get a stipen fo each posone they keep on a daily basis.
I was tying out out a parent who was perfoming acts upon his child. problem is it was a sting, thee was no child and no cime. oh well, live and lean.