Question:

How much time is my boyfriend looking at??
He was arrested for trafficking stolen property in the first degree. He also had drug paraphenalia on him. He has no previous felonies, but does have a previous shoplifting charge. This is in the state of arizona. Is there any way he can lower his sentence with rehab??

Answer:

As noted below, Mr. Black is correct. The best approach to get a more favorable plea agreement (or possible dismissal) is to hire an experienced criminal defense attorney who can fight constitutional violations, address weaknesses in the state’s case and present mitigation on your husband’s behalf. Legal issues are highly technical and require the expertise of an attorney. This forum has a handful of excellent attorneys who should be more than willing to help. Best of luck to you!

Aaron Black stated the following:
“Trafficking in Stolen Property in the First Degree is a class 2 felony. This is the Second Highest Felony and carries significant penalties. With only one count of Trafficking in Stolen Property your boyfriend could be sentenced to prison anywhere from 3 – 12.5 years in prison (if he has no priors). He is also eligible for probation since it is his first felony offense. However, in addition to probation, a judge can always sentence him up to 1 year flat in county jail.

Having worked with the County Attorneys for years, rehab is not going to get you very far. Rehab will not hurt. He should at least try it if he is out of custody. You need to have an experienced and knowledgeable attorney review the case. What will help is finding a weakness in the State’s case and attacking it.

There are many great attorneys here on AVVO or you can contact the State Bar of Arizona.”



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