Has my son blown his chances?

USAVirgin

dzug1 wrote: »

HE has to attend in person. I suspect YOU won't be allowed in the building.

Thanks dzug, I think he might not be mature enough or have the right skills to attend an interview at this time, so might be best that he doesn't come with us on holiday and maybe in the future if he wants to go to US he will then be mature enough to go for an interview then.

Thank you to all who have given me advice/help on this thread.:T

dzug1

USAVirgin wrote: »

Yes, both me and OH have read him the riot act, but really didn't know that in law you are an adult at 17!! Thanks for that and all your help

Remember you have to distinguish UK and US law in cases like this - US law rules, whatever the UK might say.

whatajoke2

dzug1 wrote: »

HE has to attend in person. I suspect YOU won't be allowed in the building.

As a person under 18 he can take his parent though.

Access to the Embassy

Only applicants with a scheduled appointment will be admitted into the Embassy. The exception being children under the age of 18 accompanied by a parent, translators and assistants for the disabled.

CountryGoose

dizzybuff wrote: »

Just make sure he stays out of trouble now . In Law 17 is adult not 18.

Nooo.... 17 is Youth Court, 18 is the threshold for Adult Court. You may still be treated as a Youth for an offence committed as a Youth, even though you are an adult.

dizzybuff wrote: »

At worst they may give him a slap on the wrist and possibly a fine, but he was 16 at the time , nearly 2 years ago , the crime wouldnt be spent , but he is now an adult and juvenille crimes tend not to be taken into consideration.

No - he is a Youth. For a first time offender (in court) pleading guilty, the only real options are a Referral Order or a Detention and Training Order. You have to be really naughty to get a DTO on a first appearance.

USAVirgin wrote: »

Court they will just throw it out.

They can't and won't. If he appears and pleads guilty he will be sentenced. If he pleads not Guilty and is convicted after a trial, he will be sentenced. If it is going to Court, you will need a solicitor.

You may also want to talk to a Solicitor now who specialises in youth matters to maybe progress the matter with the local Youth Offending Service to see if a Final Warning may be more appropriate.

USAVirgin

CountryGoose wrote: »

You may also want to talk to a Solicitor now who specialises in youth matters to maybe progress the matter with the local Youth Offending Service to see if a Final Warning may be more appropriate.

It was the Sargent at the YOT who has insisted that it goes to Court as the CPS said to just give him a Final Warning, so have been advised to just sit and hold tight until matters take their own course.

Do you know how much notice you get re a Court date. My only concern is that we will be on holiday when the summons comes through and as the mail won't be opened until we get home (my son is staying elsewhere) he might have missed the date.

Many thanks

spiro

They will give you reasonable notice but it may only be a week. Problem is, if he fails to turn up at court they can issue a warrant for his arrest and they will come hammering on your door quite possibly at 5am as they get a better capture rate early in the morning.

USAVirgin

spiro wrote: »

They will give you reasonable notice but it may only be a week. Problem is, if he fails to turn up at court they can issue a warrant for his arrest and they will come hammering on your door quite possibly at 5am as they get a better capture rate early in the morning.

.....and that won't help his chances at all will it? Does anybody know what type of envelope it comes in and I assume it will be addressed to him. As I could get my friend to call in and check the mail on a daily basis just to make sure we don't miss the letter.

......This was meant to be a holiday of a lifetime, but wish I hadn't booked the thing now!!!:eek:

thetope

I'm no expert on these matters, but a colleague of mine recently applied for a visa to attend a family wedding as he was ineligible for a visa waiver due to a drink-driving conviction 2.5 years ago. As he had no idea that his conviction would exclude him for a waiver, he only applied for the visa 4 weeks in advance of travelling.

He was requested to take a medical, supposedly to confirm whether the drink driving was due to a serious underlying drink problem/addiction [it wasn't, it was an error of judgement in driving home the morning after - no excuse i realise, but just setting it in to context). The medical took place before the interview which isnt usually the case but he was pushed for time. The medical was in london, at a cost of £200 plus travel and the visa interview was in belfast. The visa was not only refused, but he was told he could not reapply for three years. So be warned if you do decide to apply for a visa at short notice, it's very likely that a medical will required to ascertain whether your son is an addict - they seem to be exceptionally melodramatic on these matters and it's also extremely likely they'll say no, based on my friend's experience.

dizzybuff

USAVirgin wrote: »

.....and that won't help his chances at all will it? Does anybody know what type of envelope it comes in and I assume it will be addressed to him. As I could get my friend to call in and check the mail on a daily basis just to make sure we don't miss the letter.

......This was meant to be a holiday of a lifetime, but wish I hadn't booked the thing now!!!:eek:

Best bet is to contact the Cops with the fact you are going away , sounds stupid I know but we have had offenders do it in the past. Or phone the court . Sorry how many months ago was it im curious?

USAVirgin

Thanks Rope - sorry to hear about your friend's experience. We have decided that he will not be coming on this holiday, due to time constraints really. Even tho if makes me really sad that he will not be with us and I know that all holiday I will be saying 'he would have loved this', I am hoping that it will also teach him a very important lesson. I'm not sure whether he would pass a medical, as I think he he has the odd one still!!! Taking him does make me feel that I am condoning what he has done and that it is okay as there are then no consequences to his actions!

Many thanks.