Help I Have A Court Date

[This Ends Now]

I have to go to court next wed. I can't do it. I am scared. Help. I can't even go into a court house for jury duty. I am going to be before a judge that could send me to prison. Not very lucid right now. Medication will kick in shortly.

 

[SunnyBrookFarm]

This Ends Now -

I am so sorry this is going on. I hope you have an attorney - especially if you could be facing jail time. If you don't show up - they will come arrest you and the judge won't take kindly to that at all. So, somehow you have to find a way to face this. Do you have someone supportive that came come with you? If not, I would contact the courthouse and see if there are any advocates available that assist people with mental illness.

I'm not sure what your charges are - but are you seeing a therapist currently? If so, would he or she will be willing to either attend with you or at a minimum write a statement to the court indicating that you have PTSD? I'm not saying this will help you get off - but it may help the judge understand if you are nervous about being there etc.

I'm sorry you are in such a tough position - but unfortunately, you are going to have to deal with this - I'm hopeful that everything will turn out better than you are expecting.

 

[suzie q]

KEEP BREATHING! Try to center yourself and stay in a safe place. Try not to think about it until the panic subsides. You are safe now and that is all you need to look at. The unknown will always make me feel like I'm gonna lose it, but I never do. You won't either. Try not to over do it with any medication. You need to think as clearly as you can. You have many days to work on solutions until your date. Try to stay in the solution and not the problem..

If you need someone to talk with, just send me a message. You seem to have a very large support group here, so reach out.
:thumbs-up:thumbs-up:thumbs-up:thumbs-up

 

[This Ends Now]

Thanks everyone. I have calmed down a bit.

I do have an attorney who is very good. I am not seeing a T right now but my MD has sent a letter stating that I have PTSD and it could be dangerous to bring me into court. I had thought that meant that I did not have to go this wed.... but I spoke with my attorney this morning and he said that the prosecutor is not being very helpful.

The charges are having pot in the last house I lived in (just under 2 ounces) which is a felony punishable by 2 to 10 years in prison. The search was illegal. The pot was not mine (a bunch of people lived there). I was not aware that there was that much in the house. The cop got into the house by threatening to shoot our dog and it set off a major flash back for me (abusive uncle was cop). Cort rooms are giant triggers for me as well. Last month I had to testify against the guy that hit me in a car accident. I was shaking so bad that I could not even answer simple questions like the time of day and traffic conditions.... and that is when I am NOT the one on trial. I have moved out of the house where the incident took place and into a house with roommates that do not drink or use drugs. I also took a drug test before my court date showing that I did not have anything illegal in my system. They have offered a plea agreement of 12 months probation which will be difficult for me but much better than prison. Another thing about prison is that my abusive father is (last I checked) a prison guard so there are extra triggers there and I would not have access to my medication which could be very dangerous.

I think I was just caught off guard with this because I had been assured that I would not have to appear in court but the prosecutor has not gotten back with my lawyer about that.

I don't think I am overdoing it with my medication... or at lest I am trying not to. I was able to get 3 or 4 hours sleep this afternoon... could not sleep last night... few hours sleep the night before. I am really stressed out about this. I have been sorting my medication for the week out into one of those little planner pill boxes so I would not go over the prescribed amount or miss doses. It has been a very useful system.

My fiance also was charged for being in the house, as was one of my friends. All three of us being charged with felonies over a tiny amount of weed hidden in different rooms of a 5 bedroom house is insane. My fiance and I have court on the same day and its messing with both of us. Its normal to have some anxiety over this type of thing but for me the anxiety is through the roof.

Thanks for listening.

 

[catjudo]

TEN--
Sorry you're having to go through this. A couple of things...even in prison they still have to give you medical care including prescribed medications.

Also, what does your attorney think your chances are of being found not guilty? If he thinks that is most likely, then try to find a way (other members have had some good suggestions) to endure the court date. If your attorney thinks you will likely be found guilty or it is a 50-50 chance on what the outcome will be, I would seriously consider the probation. Usually that just means you have to follow a few rules which primarily center around not breaking any more laws while you're on probation and checking in with your probation officer once a month. If your abusive father is a prison guard, I definitely would not want to end up there.

But that's JMHO. Only you can decide what is the right choice for you. Best of luck getting through this difficult situation.

 

[tryintobreathe]

TEN,

I know how scary it is to do something like this. Try to remember that if you blow it off, it will only get much worse. Instead of MAYBE going to jail, you will go to jail. Hang in there...deep breaths!!

Jen

 

[midi]

It's hard, but you've got to go. If your fiance can't be there at the same time because of court, make sure a friend is there.

What a crock of crap you are going through! I hope things work out. Keep us updated.

 

[This Ends Now]

Thank you all for your support and understanding. :Hug_emoticon:

My lawyer thinks I have about a 75% chance of winning if this goes to trial... but 25% chance of failure is a big risk. If I did not have so many triggers about this I would probably take the risk and plea not guilty (especially since I consider myself innocent). I wish I had the guts to say that when the state imprisons people wrongly then the only place for the just is in prison. Unfortunately I put my chances of survival in prison far too low for my liking. It makes me feel weak and cowardly to just accept a plea and not fight an unjust law enforced by police brutality.

You all are correct that I will have to find a way to survive at least one day in court. My fiance has his court date the same day as me so at least he will be there. I will also take my medication before hand and have my colonzepam and my blood pressure medication and my inhaler (in the prescription bottle to show it is legal) with me in case I just break down completely. I hope the judge will not hold any of this against me.

I also plan on calling my doctor on Monday and explaining how my symptoms have gotten much worse with the understanding that I have to go to court and might wind up in jail. My lawyer advised me to have my doctor write another note explaining the potential risk due to my PTSD. My doctor is more than awesome and very compassionate.

Odds are that I will just accept the plea agreement (even though it is unjust) and be a good little citizen for 12 months. Even that does not sound too good since I would be waving my fourth amendment rights and the thought that the police can just enter my home for any reason at any time for a year sends my stomach into fits. It would also bug me if I cannot leave the state since my grandfather is getting very old. Hopefully they make some sort of exception in case of family emergency. The community service part I have absolutely no problem with. If I had any way to swap out some of the other restrictions in exchange for extra community service I would take it in a heartbeat. The "just say no to drugs" class I am kinda worried about. I have always been a difficult student (ADD) and seem to compulsively correct teachers that give out incorrect information. Maybe bringing my journal and writing my objections down as if I am taking notes will help me sit down and shut up like I am supposed to.

I will keep you all posted about my progress. If anybody wants to say a prayer for me I would be most grateful.

 

[catjudo]

It would also bug me if I cannot leave the state since my grandfather is getting very old. Hopefully they make some sort of exception in case of family emergency.

This is usually left to the discretion of your probation officer. Generally, if the PO hasn't had any problems with you and you've been doing everything you're supposed to...clean drug tests, working on community service, showing up for appointments, staying out of trouble, etc AND given the fact that this isn't a violent offense, most likely they would allow you to travel to your grandfather. They'll verify the information that you provide about your family emergency (usually a call to a family member or friend is sufficient) and then give you written documentation to keep with you that shows you have permission to be traveling out of state.

 

[This Ends Now]

TEN--
Sorry you're having to go through this. A couple of things...even in prison they still have to give you medical care including prescribed medications.

This is only true for the most basic medications. Psychiatric medications are usually withheld. They would probably allow me to continue the blood pressure medication... but that's the only one. There is no chance that they would continue with the colonzepam, ambien, or prozac. There is a slight chance that they would allow the medication for loss of appetite and stomach pain. There is also a very small chance that if my doctor switched me to an antipsychotic like zyprexa it would be allowed but again the chances are slim. Even in cases where the medical need is clearly legit you still have to deal with the guards and not all of them are good. My father (bastian of truth that he is) has stated some of the abuses has seen, so has amnesty internation and several news sources.

 

[suzie q]

Something I wanted to add to all the wonderful advice that's been given is that I have a hard time dealing with the unknown when I try to project what will happen.

My way of dealing with panic situations is to try to stay one step ahead of what I think will happen. I'm a survivor and that was my MO. Stay one step ahead... I thought I was safe that way.

No matter the outcome, there was always one thing I did not expect. I set myself up often for a panic attack. Things were never as bad as I had in my head and all my variables would come up short. I had to turn things over to a higher power (what ever that is for you) and try not to snatch it back. I couldn't take the stress and pain with all the "what-ifs" I had in my head.

Even if the worse happened, it was ALWAYS alot less than my head imagined. Sometimes I was put somewhere to help someone else, sometimes to learn something about myself (ie..I'm stronger than I think I am) or to gain experience so that through that, I might keep someone from making the same mistake. I didn't want to admit that good could come from evil if I just kept my priorities straight. Staying in fear always slammed me into the ground.

Your lawyer has told you some hopeful outcomes. Hang on to the positive and walk away from the negative. I learned things will turn out just the way they are meant to be if you concentrate on the positive. Hang in there. Many prayers sent your way....:thumbs-up

 

[a3a2]

This,

Just wanted to let you know I am praying for you often. Can't imagine how frightening this must be for you, but I think you are gonna come out of this okay.