My Son Arraigned this morning on a drug paraphernalia charge

[lovemydog]

50. A few more questions

he & you may consider adding to a checklist:

If your son pleads, can he plead down to something not involving a felony?
In other words, something that he does not have to put on a job application?
And if that occurs, can he get a written promise as to the exact date that it will be expunged completely from the record?
I suggest asking these questions because there may be some way that so long as there are no other incidents, for a certain period of time, he may have it completely expunged from the record.

Just an aside here rbrnmw. I've read and heard people say that if every one of these stupid cases were taken to trial it would clog up the court system and that would be great. But it's easy to sit here encouraging this because it's easier said than done, because we're not the ones taking the risks. I know you and your son and his father will gather enough to make reasoned & strong decisions. Especially your son.

The more information he can gather, especially from the public defender and a possible criminal lawyer and anyone else who is most familiar with your jurisdiction, the better he'll be able to make good decisions that minimize his risk and be confident with his decisions going forward.

That's not to say he shouldn't take it to trial and hope for dropped charges or an acquittal. There might also be a way to plead nolo contendre (not admitting guilt or innocence). Things are negotiable in different ways in different jurisdictions, depending on the court backlog, the budget and political nature of the district attorney's office, the tenor of what happens if these cases are taken to trial, the nature of how charges can be dropped and other factors he can and should research before making well-informed decisions.