What options?
Certain programs allow you to wipe your record clean if you fulfill specific conditions. Deferred adjudication and pretrial diversion could keep you from having a criminal record. Deferred adjudication entails the following:
1. You must either plead guilty or no contest (nolo contendere) to the charges, but the court defers your plea pending the completion of conditions such as:
- Counseling
- Drug treatment programs
- Probation
- Community service
- Other requirements ordered by the court or requested by the prosecution
2. If you successfully complete the conditions, the court dismisses the charges against you and your record remains clean.
3. If you fail to successfully complete the conditions, the court enters your plea, a judgment and imposes a sentence. A conviction appears on your record.
A pretrial diversion program also requires you to meet and complete certain conditions, but differs in the following ways:
1. You do not enter a plea of guilty or no contest.
2. If you fail to complete the conditions, the prosecution moves forward with the charges against you.
3. The court cannot automatically pass judgment or impose a sentence since you entered no plea prior to entering the program.
The prosecution has a significant say in whether you enter into either of these programs. Your attorney can negotiate with the prosecutor if you qualify for either of these programs. Entry into either of these programs also depends on whether the evidence prosecutors intend to present to the court would prove your guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Therefore, before considering a plea bargain, pretrial diversion or a deferred adjudication, your attorney can review the evidence that supposedly proves your guilt and ensure that law enforcement officials did not somehow violate your rights. Furthermore, your attorney can ensure that procedures used to test any of the evidence followed proper procedures and technicians properly conducted the testing without mistakes.
What options?
Certain programs allow you to wipe your record clean if you fulfill specific conditions. Deferred adjudication and pretrial diversion could keep you from having a criminal record. Deferred adjudication entails the following:
1. You must either plead guilty or no contest (nolo contendere) to the charges, but the court defers your plea pending the completion of conditions such as:
a. Counseling
b. Drug treatment programs
c. Probation
d. Community service
e. Other requirements ordered by the court or requested by the prosecution
2. If you successfully complete the conditions, the court dismisses the charges against you and your record remains clean.
3. If you fail to successfully complete the conditions, the court enters your plea, a judgment and imposes a sentence. A conviction appears on your record.
A pretrial diversion program also requires you to meet and complete certain conditions, but differs in the following ways:
1. You do not enter a plea of guilty or no contest.
2. If you fail to complete the conditions, the prosecution moves forward with the charges against you.
3. The court cannot automatically pass judgment or impose a sentence since you entered no plea prior to entering the program.
The prosecution has a significant say in whether you enter into either of these programs. Your attorney can negotiate with the prosecutor if you qualify for either of these programs. Entry into either of these programs also depends on whether the evidence prosecutors intend to present to the court would prove your guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Therefore, before considering a plea bargain, pretrial diversion or a deferred adjudication, your attorney can review the evidence that supposedly proves your guilt and ensure that law enforcement officials did not somehow violate your rights. Furthermore, your attorney can ensure that procedures used to test any of the evidence followed proper procedures and technicians properly conducted the testing without mistakes.