Post: 2nd theft offense while on probation

Posted by andrea on 6/11/08

my name is andrea and i am twenty years old and living in
michigan. i have never gotten into any kind of trouble
until this passed january where i attempted and was caught
shoplifting for the first time (a $14 package of socks). i
was given a ticket and the court ordered me to choose
between either 90 days in jail, a $500 fine, or ten days
of community service. because i am working a minimum wage
job, paying for my own apartment, i chose the community
service.

i am still on probation and was caught stealing
merchandise equal to about $30 at a rite-aid. i was
arrested and taken to jail where i posted a $500 bond.
while being questioned at my arrival to the station the
officers realized that i have a few mental disorders. not
willing to talk much about them to the officers, they
still insisted that after i post bond i should check
myself into the hospital psych unit nearby. i can't afford
to do so, so i won't. (will that make me look bad?)

i am just trying to figure out what will happen to me. i
want to get punished. i deserve it! but more than anything
i want to get help for my conditions that i feel directly
relate to my crimes. do you think the judge will have any
empathy? i've been told before when asking this question
that i am making up excuses for my crimes. but 1) i want
to get punished, again, i feel as though i deserve it. i
do! 2) there are scars all over my body from years and
years of torturing myself so this is not something i am
making up on the spot in hopes of getting any pity from
anyone.

i just need to know what you think my future holds for me.
like i said, i'm working at a minimum wage job where i can
only get around 20 hours a week, i am living on my own
because when i lived with my mom we were without
electricity, heat, and a car. she emotionally abused me
all of my life and i had to get away from her. i feel as
though the fact that i am living on my own will beg the
question if i can afford that, then why steal? but that's
no the case at all! and also, i am paying my own way
throught college completely by myself and am making the
dean's list when in high school i didn't even graduate on
time due to my mental conditions. i am trying to make a
life for myself but keep setting myself back! will the
judge have any empathy for me? will he see that i am
trying (failing miserably at times, but i am obviously
making an effort, and making some progress) to better
myself from my past? i can't afford any type of fines (but
in reality, who says that they CAN?) and want to pay out
as littles as possible. not for my own greed, but so i can
keep my home. what do you think will happen?

Posts on this thread, including this one

2nd theft offense while on probation, 6/11/08, by andrea.

Re: 2nd theft offense while on probation, 6/11/08, by C.