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Pre-sentencing

Interview with Larry, Tawnie and Henry

JM: Tell us about the pre-sentencing process:
Larry: Pre sentencing process was pretty straight to the point at all times. They would call you in with a public defender and offer you a deal. You are always presumed guilty before innocent.
Tawnie: Even though this was my first arrest and I had no criminal record, my bail was set at $500,000 since I was homeless at the time and considered a flight risk. I had a private attorney who petitioned for a reduction in bail, or to be released on OR to the custody of a drug and alcohol rehab program (Hope House). I had 10 character reference letters to support this petition, and the judge granted my OR release on the condition that the Sheriff's Department provide me with an ankle monitor. The Sheriff's Department refused the judge's order, saying they only provided ankle monitors to sentenced defendants. So I stayed in jail fighting my case. I waived time (meaning my right to a speedy trial) so that my attorney could prepare. The pre-trial court dates (including the petition for bail reduction) took from Dec. 3 - March 23 at which point my pre-trial court date was finally set for June 23, 2009.
Henry: i went to court, pleaded no contest due to a lot of pressure from the police and found myself with a charge that carried a felony and is still with me to this day.while in jail, waiting for court, i was getting time served, id wait for my court date and then go through the required due process of dealing with a felony charge. it was not fun.

JM: Did you have police stop by your house for questioning? If not please give us details on how you came to be arrested.
Larry: I started out in 1995 by getting arrested for a burglary which was a mistake because I owned the house. Not knowing how the law works or about jail I was pretty scared and ended up taking a deal for probation. This was a burglary upon my own residence.
Tawnie: I was in a hotel room rented with a stolen credit card. The police knocked on my door, asked me to step into the hallway which I did, then they handcuffed me for "questioning". They brought me into the room without asking my permission to enter, and searched it while interrogating me for about 1 hour. During their illegal search, they found a baggie with 0.2 grams of cocaine in it. At that point I was read my Miranda rights and arrested for possession of a controlled substance.
Henry: yes, they stopped by alright.they ran up on me and almost tackled me to the ground in front of my home, while neighbors were outside.i was buying ice cream. the ice cream man was an undercover police officer who had been driving by for days at the same time and asking me really weird questions.they arrested me and threw tons of lies at me. if i would have fought the charge i would have won the case. but i was young, and the police knew what to do to screw my life over for a few bucks.they destroyed my home, and broke my computers. they tried to "make up" several stories and wrongly accuse me of how , where and why i purchased some of my belongings. out of the list of charges only one went through, and i should have fought it. i found out the entire story of what happened after i was released from jail and its mindblowing how the police are the REAL criminals and the real lawbreakers of our communities. these people literally get away with murder and we pay their salary.this country is nothing like it used to be, even though its always been built on war, drugs, and money.

JM: What was court like? Please give as many details as you recall.
Larry: court was scary because they processed a lot of people at once. We would all be seated in the courtroom behimd protective glass and they would call our names one by one to accept our charges.
Tawnie: It was humiliating to be brought into court handcuffed to your waist and wearing bright orange. It felt like I was already tried and convicted. I was instructed not to look at anyone in the courtroom other than my lawyer and the judge. I could not look into the seats for anyone who may have been there to support me. I had a friend there who tried to say hi and the bailiff came over to me saying if I acknowledged or looked at anyone behind me that I would be taken out of the courtroom and the proceedings would go on without me.
Henry: court was like any other court, i would be in shackles, along with many other inmates, and we would all walk to court together, single file line, against the wall, through the hallways from the main jail into the main courtroom, we would sit on the side benches ( not the place where regular people sit) then we would get read our charges, or even plea if it was time, and then we'd be sent back to jail, unless we are ordered released or possibly bail was paid. you should really ask more specific questions...i could write for hours just on this one question.maybe i should ask, what exactly are you looking to get out a question like this? court seems the same everywhere. the judge , the da, the police, all in cahoots. all trying hard to get the city money by screwing someone over whether to make quota or just on a power trip. all courts, are the same.whether you sit on the side, the front, the back..etc.. you sit, you wait, your name is called, you listen, and ask questions if you need. court is never fun. i was sentenced, went back to jail and sat there until i was released on probation.

JM: What were your original charges? What did you end up being convicted of?
Larry: My original charges were 460PC-a which was a strike-able offense. It was residential burglary upon my own home. It was all a sham to get me to plead guilty so that they could get me on paperwork and into their system. The 3 strikes law had just been passed and they were arresting as many people as possible no matter what.
Tawnie: I was originally charged with possession of a controlled substance (11350 HS) and under the influence of a controlled substance (11550 HS). Later, 14 felonies were added to the same incident: multiple counts of commercial burglary, identity theft and fraud, plus possession of identifying information. I plead no contest later to just two counts of commercial burglary (484 PC), and one count of possession of a controlled substance (11350 HS).
Henry: tons of weird charges that all were dropped. my main charge was selling less than 20$ worth of methamphetamines to someone who was arrested and set me up to get out of their charge.i was convicted of that charge.

Read about sentencing in the San Mateo County Jail