Posted on 08/26/2024 5:02:34 PM PDT by Jonty30
My father is in the hospital and won't be coming home, although he's still pretty strong. Stairs are a risk to him now, so we are trying to get him homed in a reasonably nice place.
My naïve and gullible sister, haha, allowed a druggie to stay in her house ostensibly to get help and get off the street. He got a hold of my dad's debit and credit cards and he passed a couple of fraudulent cheques for a total of $8,000 that we can offhand calculate. It may be higher when everything is audited.
So my question is, if somebody did this in your state what penalty could he pay and what penalty is most likely that he would have to pay in your state?
In my country, if they charge him with theft over $5,000 and fraud over $5,000, he could get 14 years in prison on each and pay upto $5,000 in fines on each. However, I am expecting maybe half that. He might get 6 or 7 years in prison and a $2,000 fine. He might also get time off for the usual bs that the system gives time off to criminals.
Time??? How long to get to the sporting goods store for a Louisville Slugger?
here in California. 6 months tops plus probation
That’s my thought as well.
An officer told me to wait outside the courthouse and take a few swings on the house.
Can’t answer your question.
You might want to set up a ‘go fund me’.
If he pays a fine, it goes to the government?
My home state’s Massachusetts.If he was prosecuted at all he’d probably be found not guilty by reason of insanity.And the prosecutor would be fine with that.
The most likely outcome around here would be a three-year prison sentence, suspended, with diversion to a "restorative justice" program, "community service", and unmonitored probation.
So, basically, nothing.
It's the same way in most States. The government is mostly unwilling to do what really stops criminals (keep them in jail longer) but will ruin the lives of law-abiding citizens without any hesitation if they fail to comply with minor technical infractions of "malum prohibitum" laws.
Sorry to hear that your family had to endure this.
Don't accept the advice from "Officer Friendly" about "take a few swings on the house". There is no such thing. Government officials want to keep an absolute monopoly on the selection of who gets punished and how much and who dishes it out. You are not a member of their club.
The officer was joking. I know he couldn’t speak that way, in an official capacity as an officer. His point was that I might as well go for a non-punishable sentence myself to get revenge upon somebody for what will be a non-punishable offence under the system.
Mandatory Minimum Sentences for Certain Crimes
Sentencing guidelines don’t apply to every crime. The federal sentencing guidelines apply to the following types of crimes, among others:
Some drug offenses, like trafficking drugs or controlled substances
Possessing, carrying, and using firearms while committing other crimes
Immigration violations
Identity theft
Sex offenses
Child pornography
Other violent offenses, like first-degree murder
The mandatory minimum sentence depends on the type of crime committed. For example, if a federal court convicts someone of first-degree murder, the mandatory minimum sentence is either the death penalty or life imprisonment. Kidnapping a minor, on the other hand, carries a 20-year minimum term.
https://www.findlaw.com/criminal/criminal-procedure/selected-state-sentencing-laws.html
In a lot of states there are “modifiers” when the crime is against the elderly.
Depending on background of the perp…a couple of years. Out in one.
I will bring that up with my sister to mention it to the prosecutor. Even if it isn’t on the books in Canadian law, taking advantage of my father, an 87 year old man, would be seen as a mitigating factor.
From what I read in the comments so far it seems a better solution would be corporal punishment like they do in Saudi and some Asian states.
A proper caning is said to work wonders on attitude adjustment.
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