North Carolina Criminal Defense Legal Questions

It depends if you were charged with just shoplifting or misdemeanor larceny. Misdemeanor larceny carries a sentence of up to 120 days in jail and shoplifting is up to 60 days.If it is your first offense, many counties have first offenders programs where you can do community service, pay a fee, and eventually get it dismissed if you do not get into further trouble for a 6 month period. If this incident occurred in Forsyth county, you can call me at (336) 761-5004 for further information.... Read More

Once you have entered a plea of guilty in front of a judge and accepted that your sentence will be served consecutively, it is extremely unlikely that a judge will change the terms of that sentence.  Unless the judge explicitly states that your sentence will be served concurrently, it will automatically be a consecutive sentence. You could potentially pursue a motion for appropriate relief based upon ineffective assistance of counsel if you believe your attorney made a mistake and that mistake prevented you from obtaining the outcome that you intended. ... Read More

If you do not already have a private attorney, it may be good idea to get one.  Private attorneys often have more time to devote to individual cases and can offer more one-on-one interactions.  If you already have a private attorney and you are unhappy with the job they are doing, it sounds like you should find someone new. ... Read More

Without more information it is hard to say.  However, based on what you have said it sounds like he can be charged with a crime but whether or not he is convicted depends on the details.  It is likely that with the assistance of an attorney he can have the charge dismissed by participating in community service.... Read More

Assault on government official is a Class A1 misdemeanor in North Carolina.  If you have no prior offenses you face up to 60 days in jails.  If you have between 1 and 4 prior convictions you face up to 75 days in jail.  If you have 5 or more prior convictions you could face up to 150 days in jail.... Read More

Do you both work? Can you pay the money back? He is pressing the charges because then the bank has to pay him the money back. But YOU will have to repay the bank. He is probably pressing charges because you have breached the trust between the two of you. He will now have a harder time trusting you. You have to see counselors and address these problems.... Read More

You made a lot of bad decisions here. First, you shoplifted which can give you a criminal record for life over a few dollars worth of merchandise. Second, they had a right to stop you and by resisting you could have been charged with a felony Robbery. Third, you not only let the police in your home and agreed to talk to them, you confessed and gave them the stolen property. You will get an ACD dismissal with a good lawyer in most jurisdictions for a first offense, but if you get arrested again the prosecutor will not reduce or dismiss the charge and you will find it very hard to get a decent job for the rest of your life, and that will not be removed since New York does not allow impingement. I am sure that you will make better decisions in the future and now realize that it was not only wrong, but that it was something that could hurt your chances of success in the future.... Read More

North Carolina takes school bullying very seriously.  In fact, the North Carolina Legislature recently passed a cyber-bullying statute which protects minors from online bullying. Your best recourse for dealing with in-school bullying is to cover your tail; document everything, inform the principle and other administrators of the circumstances surrounding the bullying, and if the harassment continues, you could consider threatening legal action against her assailants and their parents. You were correct in teaching your daughter to defend herself, just make sure that she understand when it is appropriate to fight and when it is not.... Read More