Q: What should you do or expect?
If your accused of shoplifting and at the store u receive a citation telling you when to appear in court but the letter in mail is showing like you were arrested and when the arraignment is. Also its the first time you have had any legal trouble.
A:
That first date should be the deadline to plead guilty or not guilty. Assuming you plead not guilty, they will then set the matter for trial at some point in the near future.
With that in mind, you should always plead not guilty, and then have your lawyer gather information concerning the case to see whether it can be resolved. In a case like this, depending on several facts, you may be able to get a not guilty or, if the facts are bad, your lawyer may be able to work it out in such a way that you avoid jail time and avoid having this go on your record.
Things like this happen all the time. Luckily, though, in my experience, since this is your first time, you have a decent shot at getting a very good result with the right lawyer.
Regardless, reach out to someone. Most lawyers on here, myself included, offer free consultations to see how we can help out.
1 user found this answer helpful
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