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Pre-sentencing

Interview with Tom, Sonja, Kurt and Marshall

JM: Tell us about the pre-sentencing process:
Tom: I got arrested and sat in jail waiting for my public defender. That stretched on for about two weeks. Then I got a lawyer I paid for and they stretched on for another couple of weeks while they got up to speed. The whole time I was there in Hennepin
Sonja: I am actually going through the pre-sentencing process currently. I went to court after getting out of jail and was put on the De Novo Program. A one year program where you're put on the color wheel and complete the recommended treatment. I was sober for 10 of those months, relapsed, and now i'm going back to court continuing with the same case. Along with another new case.
Kurt: i was let out on conditional bail, i had to have a breathalizer that went off 3 times a day and it plugged into my phone jack and had a voice reconition, i had a public defender and i dont think she did much good, if i had money i would have got a real lawyer
Marshall: Pre-sentencing generally is the coming together of all parties to decide what the consequences should be for the crime. Generally preceded by the pre-sentence investigation (P.S.I.) which looks into the case facts as well as the defendant to a much deeper extent. It's not uncommon for prosecutors to contact numerous family members and even friends on both parties sides to get a better feel for the dependants' state of mind and a suitable punishment.

JM: Did you have police stop by your house for questioning? If not please give us details on how you came to be arrested.
Tom: I didn't know I had a warrant for that incident until my Probation Officer on another matter looked it up and told me.
Sonja: No I never had police stop by my house for questioning. I was originally arrested while sitting in a car parked on the side of the road. Someone suspected there was drug activity going on in the car so they called in loidering to minneapolis police department. A squad pulls up behind us and walks to my window (passenger side) and immediately can tell that we're high. He told me to step out of the vehicle and proceeded to handcuff me. Right away he saw syringes containing heroin poorly hid under my seat. He then had the two men i was with step out and did a complete search of the car.
Kurt: i was sleeping in my car in my drive way and the cops woke me up and said they were going to give me a dui and i was pissed off and got into a fight with them and they ended up tasing me twice then they arrested me and bringing me to jail
Marshall: The day of the incident a "concerned" 91 year old citizen driving SOMEWHERE in our relative proximity noticed an escalating confrontation underway between my ex and I in my vehicle as we were driving to run a simple errand. This "good sumeritan" called the police to alert them of this "horrific altercation" that they "witnessed" taking place in their beautiful,little quiet neighborhood. By this time we were well underway with our tasks for the day and compltely past the minor scaw that the citizen was so shocked at. Never the less about an hour later my girlfriend at the time recieved a call from her mother saying the cops were there and they needed to physically assess her; she refused... At this point I'm starting my panic mode as this would be my 2 domestic, not to mention with the same victim, and with my criminal record at the time it was an automatic felony no questions asked... So we goto a near-buy city, rent a room and plan on lying low. Come to find out the police were sending my cell phone annonymous text messages in order to "ping" my phones signal and exaclty triagulate my signal... Approximately a half hour after i recieved the first random annonymous text sure enough the familiar knock and shout of officers at the door... With no other options before me I sat on the bed, lit 3 cigs and waited for the door to be kicked in as I clutched my girlfriend. So they swiftly come in, detain me, and take me outside to physically and mentally harass (borderline assault) my ex... After finding no marks and her repeteadly stating nothing happened I was finally uncuffed and let out of the back of the squad car.... before I start part 2 of the arrest I should mention my ex was on probation in D.W.I. court and on rigid stipulations, and I had already had a domestic with her in 2009 that eventualy after many classes resulted in a lifted no-contact order which made her probation officer furious... The day I got the order lifted he immediately placed one on her so she couldn't legally see me without possible legal reprecussions... PART 2 OF THE STORY: after her probation officer heard about this latest incident he demaned a confession or he would violate HER on a no-contact order violation and have HER locked up... She promptly wove quite a yarn to appease her nazi-inspired P.O. Once he had her secretly recorded confession done in his office HE-(Emil Carlson-Clark) re-filed the charges that the local police department was in the process of dropping. Shortly after, again my ex's mother was notified of the issuance of a warrant for my rest and immediately called my girlfriend who I was with at the time... We ran, mainly from iowa to wisonsin and secluded parts of MN but mainly Iowa to be safe. For some reason one weekend I decided to have a friend get a hotel in our home town... Sure enough 4a.m. the Bloomington, Richfield, and Edina police departments kick the door in to arrest me. Me being the kinda guy I am had an escape route planned out already though; the window across an open soccer field to sweet freedom... Unfortunately as soon as I kicked the window out and put one leg through I hear "get him!!" and was met very graciously by Bloomington police k-9... After three minutes of what must have been the greatest laugh of all time the officer finally and literally stepped of my neck and stopped commanding the k-9 officer to "get him!" "off!" "get him!" "off!" "get him!" "off!" 2 felony charges, a misdemeanor fleeing police and a gross misdemeanor obstruction of legal process, 23 stitches, 6 huge fang holes and a 3rd nipple so generously donated thanks to the fat tissue the dog tore out of my armpit, and I'm sitting in downtown Hennepin county jail for the next 2 and a half months wondering what the hell happened..... Mind you I was 21 at the time, but just a bit of history between myself and the "outstanding" officers of the Bloomington Police Department; at age 15 the Bloomington Police thought it would be fair, funny or whatever they'd call it to - while i was hand-cuffed, ankle-cuffed and at a .41 B.A.C. to do me the favor of knocking my two front teeth as well as a side tooth out with the brass knuckles I had completely forgotten I had on me due to my "obstructing of the legal process"......

JM: What was court like? Please give as many details as you recall.
Tom: Before I went to court I was wondering if the particular crime I was involved in would be harsher treatment in Minnesota. I heard it could be pretty harsh.
Sonja: Court honestly sucks. They literally make it the way that they do so you don't want to ever go back and deal with it again. You may have court scheduled at 9am but you'll end up being there until noon. Court is very nerve wrecking and stressful but for me at Hennepin county hasn't been the worst and the ultimate decisions of the judges have always been better then anticipated.
Kurt: i got their and talked with my public defender and i knew i was guilty so I took the plea deal from the prosecuter, it didnt take long, i pleaded guilty and the judge gave me a speech and that was pretty much it, it only took about 30 minutes
Marshall: Court Is only a good thing when they say your release date... In hennepin you get taken from the general population with whoever else has court that same day right after breakfast. No books, no food, no extra towels for seat padding in the all-cement holding tanks that you will spend the next 6-9 hours sitting, standing, pacing, freezing/burning up, and starving in. Not to mention the day old grey-turkey baloney sandwhiches and soggy nearly-rotten apple they provide as your "meal" once, sometimes twice if your reallllly lucky on that day. That doesn't include the hours and hours of mind-numbing, nonsensical lies and scared rambling of the other 40 guys crammed into the 4-man holding tank with you..... Generally This wonderful day is capped of by false hopes of possible release followed by a lenthgy court date continunce in which you will feel completely 100% totally helpless, and hopeless knowing all the lawyers, judges and people in the courtroom will be getting in their vehicles to go home to their lovely families, eat their delicious meals and enjoy the non-simplistic simplicities in everyday life such as the Sun, non-community showers and toilets and most likely, a t.v. with cable and remote...

JM: What were your original charges? What did you end up being convicted of?
Tom: Violation of order of protection. I plead down to a lesser charge of pattern of harrasing conduct.
Sonja: possession of drug paraphanelia 5th Degree drug Possession Both these charges were meant to get dropped after completing the De Novo program. Leaving them still pending.
Kurt: 2nd degree assault, still out on proable cause, 4th degree assault
Marshall: 1)Felony Domestic Assault 2)Terroristic Threats 3)fleeing police in other than a motor vehicel and 4) obstruction of legal process. *after taking it to trial and being locked up for 2 months just to have them dismiss it I was out 1 week. and caught a no-contact order violation which they re-imposed on me even though all the original charges were dismissed... After catching that order violation they re-charged me with the felony-domestic,a felony no-contact order violation, and a more serious and new "special" law "pattern of harassing AND pattern of stalking behavior... The last 2 charges no longer hold the normal 0-10year prison sentence, they hold 10-20year sentence, BOTH of them.....I took a plea deal and only admitted to the felony domestic and felony no-contact order violations.

Read about sentencing in the Hennepin County Jail