Peter John Smith

This was a long time ago, but I wanted to write this because it still haunts me today. I was 18 years old at the time (3 months after my birthday). This attorney did a terrible job at not only explaining my options, but negotiating my plea deal. I had just 10 minutes to decide to plead guilty, be...cause I was apparently supposed to show up 30 minutes early to court to discuss my case (never told me to show up early). Typical public defender pressures me into a plea deal right there, and says i'll get 30 days instead of possibly 12 years. What young kid, with no parental support, would not cave right there? I had no idea i was signing and pleading to a Class A felony (the most severe) - Burglary 1, and Theft 2. What did I do? I entered an OPEN garage with nothing but a flashlight, duffel bag, and took some fireworks and beer! I hurt absolutely no one, and was not even caught until an hour later at a friends house i was partying at. At worst, this should have been a class C felony - I used no "burglary tools" or had any weapons. To top it off, I received 5 days jail time, which due to a scheduling mistake, i MISSED MY GRADUATION CEREMONY... BY 1 DAY. I spent it in jail while some of my family members drove up from out of state to surprise me, not knowing i was in jail. I hope you read this and feel guilty for not doing a better job - i was completely on my own and you rushed through my case like nothing. I take responsibility for the mistake i made (while drunk and high), but i certainly didn't deserve an uncaring attorney like you. The criminal justice system is really sad. On the flip side.. because i couldn't get a job anywhere (but burger king), i ended up starting my own online business and i live a successful and comfortable life.