Can being in a 13 automatically qualify us for a public defender?

[krielly]

Just wondering if anyone has been in a similar situation while in an open 13.

To make a long story short, my 16 yo son is in serious trouble with the law. Paying an attorney seems impossible at this point. If the court looks at our yearly income alone, I doubt we will qualify, but I am wondering if they might consider the fact that we are in an open 13 as a factor? Does anyone know?

PS: My husband was able to get out of Jury Duty last year due to the fact we said him serving would cause us a hardship due to loss wages, as he was in a 13.........

Thanks in advance
K

[wooisme]

well when they arrest you they say: If you cannot afford an attorney one will be appointed to you,,,,,,,,,,,i would say being in bankruptcy means no money, it means you can't afford it. so i would say you could get one. I don't know if there is a special procedure they go through to see if you can't afford one. but clearly you cannot.

[HHM]

I suppose it depends on how the Public Defender vets their intakes. Generally, they look at income, but I suppose if you are in an active chapter 13, that means you have no disposable income to pay an attorney...but I wouldn't hold your breath. Public Defenders are generally set up to help the "truly indigent"

All you can do is go down to the office and fill out their form. Also, have you called around to various defense attorney's...I wouldn't just "assume" you cannot afford an attorney until you have made some inquiries. Also, it depends on the nature of the offense, if we are talking DUI or Drug offenses, you can get an attorney for relatively cheap, if we are talking armed robbery, etc...that is more pricey.

[krielly]

Yes, we have an appointment w/an attorney on Friday. Initial consultation. I believe he said his fees would be $150/hr, which is actually cheaper than my BK attorney is.............go figure!

They are drug charges. The attorney said over the phone that his first priority will be to get the case put in Juvenile Court........

The Sheriff's Dept said the SA is going to charge him as an adult, but not sure if that is actually true or not..........

[nazstar]

Not that I am an expert, but I think Juvenile Court would depend on what kind of drug charges. Getting caught with a joint is alot different than getting arrested with quantity - which would bring "intent to distribute" into play. Also, if there was violence involved, that's another level. Good luck to you!! I hope it works out!

[krielly]

I am trying so hard to not get too far ahead of myself at this point, and deal w/one thing at a time. sigh...........

We just took my son to rehab yesterday and he will probably be there for at least 1 month or so.....(missing xmas will be really tough for us all)

We'll know more, I'm sure when we meet w/the attorney on Friday.

[nazstar]

I am trying so hard to not get too far ahead of myself at this point, and deal w/one thing at a time. sigh...........

We just took my son to rehab yesterday and he will probably be there for at least 1 month or so.....(missing xmas will be really tough for us all)

We'll know more, I'm sure when we meet w/the attorney on Friday.

This may be little comfort, but at least he's getting the help he needs in rehab. Before I met my husband, he struggled with substance abuse, his wife walked out on him (partly related to his problem), his father was killed in a horrible farming accident, and he was broke - all in the same year. He went on a bender christmas eve and spent Christmas Day in rehab against his will. But he learned from that and quit all the drugs cold turkey - been clean for 5 years now. Focus on getting your son well first and then worry about the courts. my thoughts are with you and your family.

[krielly]

Thanks so much for your support. Unfortunately, this is not new to me, just new to my son. I went through this with my DH 2 years ago (he relapsed after 6-7 years of being clean) and that's a large part of how we wound up in a 13 to begin with.
My DH is a crack cocaine addict. He went into treatment 2 years ago, and going through this with my son (although a different drug) is so devastating.....

I know in my heart that he is where he needs to be, but it is so hard.

Yes, my first concern is my son's addiction, with the legalities being second, however.....with an arraignment date looming, we can't just "ignore" it forever

thanks again

[sandhall]

Our chapter 13 did not matter at all when my then teenage child got into trouble they took yearly income and said we make to muchwe made 37,000 that yr. we tried to get a public defender even ask for a hearing and judge said go pay for one or I will hold you in comtempt of court. We ask the public defenders office for a list of attorneys who could work on a sliding scale. In the end he didn't even bill us because he saw we couldn't afford it

[krielly]

Update

Well, the arraignment was today, and to my relief the court approved assistance for a public defender. We have a co-pay of $257.35, but the rest is covered.
We also have until Feb 17th to pay it all.
Thank god, one less thing to stress about - right now I'm primarily worried about my son and his addiction.........that's enough.

[woohoogirl]

- right now I'm primarily worried about my son and his addiction.........that's enough.

How is your son doing?

[krielly]

He's really being resistant to treatment. It's tough to call your child and have him say "I think I just want to plead guilty, go to jail and get this all over with"...............UGH!!!!!!!!!!!!
It's so heartbreaking! Trying to stay positive, but sometimes it's really tough. Sure puts things in perspective sometimes... Makes this whole 13 process seem like a walk in the park in comparison.

thanks for your concern! It's really appreciated!

K

[Flamingo]

He's really being resistant to treatment. It's tough to call your child and have him say "I think I just want to plead guilty, go to jail and get this all over with"...............UGH!!!!!!!!!!!!
It's so heartbreaking! Trying to stay positive, but sometimes it's really tough. Sure puts things in perspective sometimes... Makes this whole 13 process seem like a walk in the park in comparison.

thanks for your concern! It's really appreciated!

K

Since your former husband had addiction problems and now you are going through this with your son, realize your son has genetic tendencies toward addiction and may have to fight it all his life. Make sure whoever works with your son is aware of your former husband's situation and when your son completes rehab, try to ensure he has a buddy lined up somewhere in the system that he can call and talk with when the urge strikes (it will). Hopefully this will be a big wake up call for him that bad things can happen which not only affect him but everyone around him due to his actions.

I hope you have a Merry Christmas and hang in there!

[krielly]

Actually, it's my current husband. He has been in recovery for 2 years now. He relapsed in August 06, but clean since then.

Bad news. I got a call from the treatment center on Friday and we had to go get my son. I had told him on Weds that he needed to be completely honest with his case manager about his feelings if they were going to help him. Took him 2 days to get up the guts to tell them he had been BSing the program, and while he knew he needed to try to stop taking the pills, he couldn't say he was ready to give up other stuff (ie marijuana). So.........they decided he needed to leave because he wasn't fully "invested in recovery". Now I am nervous as heck about everything...Mostly keeping him drug free.......then there is court (and how negative this will look) and school (negative again, as far as trying to get him back in).
Of course, nothing can happen till after the holidays, so everything is pretty much on hold right now. I'm supposed to call a local outpatient treatment facility and set up counseling on Weds. I am scared to death about it all at this point. Haven't been able to reach his attorney either (also because of the holidays).........If any of you are the "praying sort", I would appreciate adding us to your prayers at this time.

Thanks
K

[rrockinggramma]

My heart goes out to you and to your son. But I know from watching it happen to my friend's family that he will recover when he feels there is something to recover from. You might need to go to the tough love program yourself so you will have the strength to shut the door on him when it comes the time to do that.