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Author Topic: Please review my addendum and critique please!! (For an Arrest)  (Read 920 times)

ace06c

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Please review my addendum and critique please!! (For an Arrest)
« on: February 08, 2010, 11:34:54 AM »
   In December of 2009 I was arrested for Disorderly Intoxication at a New Years Eve party I was attending. There was a great deal of alcohol at the party which everyone had been consuming. Around 1:00 a.m. after all the celebration was over I witnessed a guy that I knew choking his girlfriend, so I immediately intervened. I asked him not to put his hands on her like he was doing and for him to leave, but after consuming as much alcohol as he had that night he would not listen to anyone. He then attempted to fight me and a couple of other people who were near by. There were no punches thrown but our noise alerted some neighbors who proceeded to call the police. We were both arrested for disorderly intoxication. After the initial phase my case was reviewed by the prosecuting attorney and my charge was lessened to Disorderly Conduct. On my behalf, my attorney filed a waiver of arraignment and a written plea of not guilty. The court offered a pre-trial diversion program which I have accepted and upon full completion of the program the charges will be dismissed.    I have learned a great deal from this situation and will do anything the court asks of me to rectify the situation and pay my debt to society. I take full responsibility for my actions and understand that my error in judgment that night could have been avoided with a little more maturity on my part. I have since refrained from drinking alcohol in excess and realize how one night and one poor decision can completely change one’s life. I had never been in trouble with the law before that night and will do everything in my power to never let it happen again.

dramaticpaws

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Re: Please review my addendum and critique please!! (For an Arrest)
« Reply #1 on: February 08, 2010, 03:41:05 PM »
Way too much detail. I would write something like:

On December 31, 2009 I was arrested for disorderly intoxication, which was ultimately reduced to a disorderly conduct charge that I plead not guilty to. The court ordered a pre-trial diversion program and upon completion the charges will be dismissed.

I have learned a great deal from this situation and take full responsibility for my actions. I had never been in trouble with the law before that night and I do not intend to put myself in that situation again.

ace06c

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Re: Please review my addendum and critique please!! (For an Arrest)
« Reply #2 on: February 08, 2010, 10:40:48 PM »
Really? You don't think that I need to explain the situation and what happened? My pre-law advisor said that she thought I should explain what happened. Anyone else have any input on this situation?

dramaticpaws

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Re: Please review my addendum and critique please!! (For an Arrest)
« Reply #3 on: February 09, 2010, 02:05:44 PM »
I just think (my opinion) that there is way too much narrative in your draft. You made a bad decision, but it is not like you stabbed the guy. I think it is much ado about nothing. The only problem I see is that it that it is so recent. Let's see if some others want to give their two cents worth on the matter.

Thane Messinger

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Re: Please review my addendum and critique please!! (For an Arrest)
« Reply #4 on: February 12, 2010, 04:37:51 AM »
For what it's worth, the suggested path is likely somewhere in the middle.  Here's why:

Bar examiners are charged with assessing the moral competency of applicants to sit for the bar exam.  Okay, now that the laughter has died down, they are charged with actually assessing these qualities.

One way they do this is by demanding disclosure of ANY fact that might bear on this issue.  Among those are criminal transgressions.  Here's the real point:  what they're (usually) looking for is not the transgression itself, but rather the disclosure, and the indications (positive or negative) that lessons were learned.

So, with most "youthful indiscretions" there's room for error.  What there's not room for is omission, lying, obvious shading, or a lack of genuine repentance. 

The initial post runs several risks: it appears to shade the crime as a bit too much the Good (if misunderstood) Samaritan; it then punts with regard to the attorney's actions and gets a bit too caught up in the legal procedure [bar examiners are almost always attorneys, so don't try to show them what you know of procedure]; and it doesn't convincingly state the lessons learned.

The suggested re-write is likely too little, and would raise questions and result in follow-up.  (Not good.)

So, think about this not from your perspective, but from the bar examiners'.  They need to be sure that they're not letting a future thug into the bar.  Think about what you would need to hear from someone who's done something foolish to believe that they had indeed learned their lesson.