Any Attorneys On Here?

Hi, everyone
If there are any attorneys on here or anyone who knows how to get someone into rehab before their preliminary and county trial has taken place. From what I'm told the place where my son is is a horrible place. We have not been allowed to visit or talk to him :)..... since he went in on the 30th because he tried to take a needle in with him. I'm so sad! I hope he doesn't feel abandoned! I hope he's doing ok!
Susan
Hi Susan,

I really feel your pain. I'm so sorry for what you are going through. I'm sorry I don't know any attorneys that can help you. All I can really do is keep you in my prayers.
Understand though, things may seem very hard on your son right now and they probably are. But it could really be the thing that makes him think twice about doing anything like that again, you know what I mean? He may need this. Hopefully it will open his eyes on what the drugs is doing to him and to all of you and he will want help. As long as he doesn't want the help right now there isn't anything you can do for him except to pray and trust God. Well, I wish you and your son the best of luck. I sure hope this is his wake up call. I'm sorry to say but if he continues down that road he may not be as lucky as being arrested the next time. This may have saved his life. You just don't know.
Love,
Liz
Thank you so much for the prayers, Liz. In my mind I want him to experience unpleasantness so that he doesn't want to get himself into this situation again, BUT my heart is aching since I was told that it's a HORRIBLE place. Thanks for the words of encouragement!
Love,
Susan
Hey Susan,

Don't worry so much about the place he's in. He's 28 years old, I'm sure he can handle it. Just keep thinking it's better then being six feet under. That is the road he's been going down. We'll just keep praying for him. Trust that God is in control.

Love,
Liz
Call the local AA or NA branch and explain your situation. First..I gues these are all things you should do first but you can assign priority to what you want.

Find a rehab/detox facility that has a bed he can get into.

Your local NA or AA branch should know a lawyer you could call.....or....call the local bar association and ask them for someone with experience in this area.

YOU can petition the court to have your son placed in a closed/locked facility.
If your son tried to smuggle in a needle to jail it should be obvious to anyone who will listen that he needs medical help.

Call the local public defenders office.

Enlist the aid of a sympathetic clergyman, medical professional, social worker,
someone at the facility you can get him into, and don't forget family members, friends of the family or anyone who might have some influence with the court.

Don't be discouraged if it takes a while. It's Saturday. I'd try to arrange as much of this stuff I could and be prepared to move forward Monday first thing in the morning.
Good luck and God bless.
Jack
Wow! Thanks so much for some direction, Jack. I'll do anything for him!
God bless you!
Susan
Hi, Liz
I know he's 28 years old, but he's also a very sensitive young man who's all alone to face some nasty stuff. Thanks for the prayers! They're appreciated much more than my words can express!
Love,
Susan
do they have drug court in the locality where your son is being housed?

does your son have an attorney?

namaste'

sammy
GREAT advice Jack. The kid obviously needs help and Mom is at a loss. My own opinion is jail will not help him. A good rehab place will. People who have a problem "have a problem" and being locked up with a bunch of crimminals, because he has a disease, is not the answer. Dev- MAKE sure it's a lockdown type of place...while you can't force him to be well, give him the chance to be well, and the only way he will is with going through a detox, and then talking to people and him understanding he is sick and needs to get well.
Hi, Sammy
I don't know of any drug court, but I can check. Would that be affiliated with state or county government?

We went to talk to an attorney who is a friend of my sister's. He looked at the charges and said we shouldn't waste our money on an attorney because he was caught red handed. He said the $3000 to $5000 would be better spent on his rehab which he feels strongly (and I hope and pray) the courts will rule since he had no criminal record before drugs came into his life.

Love,
Susan
Hi, Danny
It's really hard to find treatment centers that are locked, but I'm trying!!!! Do you have any to recommend? We're from the Harrisburg, PA, area. I have a question though. Since he'll be in prison 15 days before the trial without drugs, won't he be through the immediate detox and ready for rehab? God bless him! I truly didn't want him to detox in there!
Love,
Susan
Devangreb,

Pennsylvania does have a drug court program that has courts located throughout the State. I do not know whether your son would qualify for the adult program, but it's certainly worth talking to his lawyer about. It would provide the type of court supervision and monitoring that your son may need. I tried unsuccessfully to get contact information for the PA program off the web. But if his attorney does any district court work, he/she should be familiar with it. Good luck. M.
mornin' devangreb -

here's a link that may prove beneficial where state of pennsylvania and substance abuse is concerned. looks like they may doing some pretty interesting things concerning non-violent drug offenders.

http://www.jointogether.org/sa/action/state/pa/

was this attorney you consulted a criminal attorney? what about a public defender? would your son qualify financially for court appointed attorney? i dunno, my friend, and i don't mean this to sound indelicate but there's an old saying that goes something like this...a defendant who represents himself in court has a fool for an attorney. with charges that an attorney thinks would cost between 3 & 5K, it sounds as if legal representation is advisable.

the bottom line is, yes after 15 days, he should be over the worse of his detox and ready for some type of rehab intervention. however, your son has broken the law and there is some penalty that he will have to pay. an attorney who is well versed in drug related crimes in your jurisdiction, in my humble opinion, would be worth his weight in gold where your son's rights are concerned.

gosh, i feel for you and your son. i recently watched this happened to the father of my grandson. we have an extremely progressive and innovative program here in virginia where non-violent offenders who are charged with drug crimes are concerned. i had no idea this existed here. i can only encourage you to find a criminal attorney who knows what resources are available for your son where the law is concerned.

much love and encouragement to you, dev - i know your heart is heavy right now.

namaste'

sammy
Sammy- It's ...a defendant who represents himself in court has a fool for an attorney and a jackass for a client. I wouldn't recommend it. I did it though, and I won, but then again, I was both a fool and a jackass...
I think Dannyrob is right (no about him being a fool & a jackass, maybe yes maybe know, ) but about getting a lawyer. I can't understand any lawyer telling u that you shouldn't waiste money on a lawyer because he got "caught red-handed." WHat he did i don't need to know, but i do know that without a lawyer he is at the absolute mercy of whatever powers that be. A lawyer can mean the difference between an ACD or a felony record. GET ONE, a criminal lawyer, even if u have to borrow the money if u can.

No record is real good. If i understand ur post right he tried to smuggle a needle into jail? That's bizzare, & a good lawyer could clearly communicate both points (no pun intended). A good lawyer might even be able to open some doors into rehab, etc. a lot of law & everything else has nothing whatsoever to do with justice or getting caught redhanded or any of the stuff. it has to do with connections, interpertations, politics, & dinaros. It is an unfortunate reality, & right now whats right & wrong don't matter- what matters is getting help for your son.

heeeeee haaaaaw! heeeee haaaaw! *wink, wink*

that's right, danny and you old dog! i knew it went something like that. thanks for the correction, my friends, and some right on suggestions!

hugs all around -

sammy
sammy, how could u have a grandson. in ur picture u look like your about 19. 25 at the oldest.
Yep, you need a lawyer. When I defended myself, (in a cilvil matter) it was tough as heck to go before a Judge and argue the case. I don't recommend it to anyone. Plus what I DO know is any lawyer will take a case if the $$ is there. You just have to find the right one. And NEVER-EVER pick a lawyer out of the phone book, and when you get one, check up on them and get references and then get MORE references...
hey you old dog - i aged gracefully. *wink wink*

namaste'

sammy
DannyRob, baised on what u & everyone says, i think i am going to add lawyers to the list of rules to live by for my son. Rule # 3 is never turst a bank or insurance company, but i think it needs to be revised to : never trust a bank, insurance company or lawyer. (i need not add never trust a politician, i think we all instinctively know that as much as we know we need air to breather.)