Is there a way to keep this off of my record?
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Is there a way to keep this off of my record?
I had my first encounter with the law the other night, before this I had never even spoken to a police officer. I was charged with concealment of merchandise before leaving the store. I don’t know what to expector what to do from here. It was a shoplifting offense but I wasn’t arrested but was given a court date.
Asked on August 29, 2011 North Carolina
Answers:
FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 12 years ago | Contributor
The best way for you to try and keep the apparent citation you received for the shoplifting offense that you were charged with from being a permanent part of your record is to retain a criminal defense atrtorney to assist you in resolving the charge against you.
Since you were not arrested, this is a relatively good sign that the charges against you will not be substantial ones warranting significant jail time and/or fine if convicted.
Potentially a good criminal defense attorney could work a deal where you pay a certain amount for a fine and you are on "court probation" for a certain time period. If you pass the "court probation" period without further problems with the law, any plea for what you were charged with could be eliminated and not show as a prior conviction upon your record.
Good luck.
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