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Pre-sentencing

Interview with Mary, D Bo, Joel and Trevor

JM: Tell us about the pre-sentencing process:
Mary: It was horrible. Lots of talking about me, lots of talking about the situation. lots of people looking down on me. Lots of people judging me. Lots of people looking into my life and prying around.
D Bo: Was none...In other cities they have pre sentencing, in Charlotte your guilty until proven innocent. I was in there for 7 months before I could even plead not guilty.
Joel: Instead of taking a plea deal, I decided to have a jury trial. That process took over two years. I was on house arrest for 11 months whereas I had a curfew of 1:00 pm and didnt get any jail credit for it. The entire process is one big headache. Never again
Trevor: I was told that I would have one year to complete twenty five days of jail time. My probation officer and I decided on the dates during June and July of this year. I was told where and when to report, what I could and could not bring etc ..

JM: Did you have police stop by your house for questioning? If not please give us details on how you came to be arrested.
Mary: yes. They stopped by quite a few times, on numerous occasions. They talked to me and all the others that were around here.
D Bo: Someone called crime stoppers.
Joel: No. I was arrested due to the work of a "CI" or Confidential Informant. A guy I was dealing with caught a charge and instead of owning up to his own actions, he agreed to work with CMPD and give them someone "bigger" in order to have his charges dropped. So I was set-up
Trevor: I was arrested for a Driving under the influence charge on June 10 of 2012. I was taken to an outlying jail processing facility immediately thereafter. Later that night I was brought before a magistrate who released me on my own recognizance. I was also arrested for driving while having license revoked.

JM: What was court like? Please give as many details as you recall.
Mary: It was a long drawn out day. The hours just dragged on and on. I was watched very closely. I was asked lots of questions. I was made to feel like dirt. the judge talked down to me and make me feel lower than dirt actually.
D Bo: The judge gave high bonds, the judge who I seen about my ankle monitor was very childish and rude to me. They treat you like your the worst person in the world and not to mention racist. The look Judge Bell gave me was like oh great another N**er.
Joel: Court was scary. I had never been in that type of trouble before and I knew it was serious.I had to wear RoboCop like leg braces for fear of me causing danger to anyone. The DA made me look like a kingpin. But I guess he was just doing his job.
Trevor: I came to court many times over the course of almost one year. I was given a public defender who delayed the court date for several months while I attended classes to help alleviate any kind of severe sentencing. The judge seemed to be fair, though I was still a little surprised at my sentence.

JM: What were your original charges? What did you end up being convicted of?
D Bo: I havent been convicted of anything and probably won't. I was charged with assualt with a deadly weapon inflecting serious bodily injury.
Joel: Trafficking in Cocaine (Possession, Poss. of Marijuana. Convicted of Trafficking Cocaine
Trevor: DUI and DWLR and I was convicted of both.

Read about sentencing in the Mecklenburg County Jail