Going to court for the first time

jiriahhh | 10:36 Mon 26th Mar 2012 | Criminal

27 Answers

I was wondering what i could expect to happen to me. I was getting drunk friday night at my friends house and hadent eaten all day so it effected me alot more than it should have ( i had 1liter of vodka and coke ) so i kinda blacked out there and next thing i remember was being near town and damaged 2 peoples car's ( i have no idea why i did these things ) and walked to the centre of town, bumped in to somone and hit him once in the face. Next thing i know im at the police station awnsering questions and i awnsered most of the incidents by saying "i cant remember... its kinda a blur to me" and now im going to court being charged with these three crimes. Im planning on going there and telling them the truth, that i dont know why i did these things and that i was heavily under the influence of alchole and the whole thing seems like a blur. Id usualy never do these things, its not like me atall. Any advice or help would be appreciated. Im 20 and have no job.

Possible GBH charges

Section 18 assault charge, yet he wasn't there?

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jiriahhh

Question Author

Hopefully*

EDDIE51

Get to the court early, like 2 hours before your case is due. There will be a duty solicitor there who you can talk to for advice. If you want, the duty solicitor will go into court with you and speak on your behalf.

jiriahhh

Question Author

@EDDIE51 Hm i may ask him for advice but i dont think ill let him speak on my behalf. Although ill see what he has to say. Thank you for that information :)

tonywiltshire

If you pick the right solicitor it will make a great deal of difference, in my view.
The right solicitor will be known at the court, be experienced in your type of alleged offence and guide you through and assist with your plea, defence, or mitigation. As stated earlier you may find you are eligible for legal aid and I have given you the contact telephone number.
The only problem may be that legal aid is so poorly paid not all solicitors will work at these rates, but there are many good solicitors who will and they can make all the difference.

jiriahhh

Question Author

@tonywiltshire The only problem with speaking to a duty solicitor, which i assume is what you mean is that my court case starts at 9:15 in the morning and the court house is open at 9:00. So id only get 15 mins to speak with him. Could i go there before the date i have to be there and speak with one?

shoota

All the court cases will be listed for the same time but they only get called by the usher when they are ready to proceed.
You should have time for a consultation - when you arrive introduce yourself to the usher for the courtroom you will be in and tell him you wish to speak to the duty solicitor. He will point him out or tell him you wish to see him and then there will be a room you can use. You won't get long but if he is goingbto speak for you, if necessary, he can pop into court and ask for another hour if they are trying to get the case going.
If you decide not to use him it would be a good idea to think about what you want to say and make a list of points so that you don't forget something relevant with the stress of the courtroom.

jiriahhh

Question Author

@shoota Wow thats great thank you for telling me. I will defo use a duty solicitor then. Any advice on what to wear there? I was thinking blue shirt, black trousers and shoes. Not sure about a tie tho. Would it make any difference in wearing one?

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