Legal Question in Criminal Law in California

The question cannot be answered as stated. You need to make clear, is the charge pending, or did he already plead to it? If pending, the difficulty can't be estimated, its a discretionary call, and there is little point us trying to guess what the DA in your son's case is inclined to do.

That being said, the grounds you see as reasonable will not be well received. EVERY CASE would be less serious if the person had either done it somewhere else or at some other time. The fact he DID DO IT AT SCHOOL is what must be dealt with. IF he didn't want to risk the misdemeanor, he should not have brought it to school!!!

If he pled to it already, there is no program for reducing to infraction. Instead try to expunge conviction after probationary term over.

The problem with your question is that doesn't deal with the reality of the situation. The District Attorney holds the discretion in how a charge is brought. They can decrease the level or raise the level of a charge depending on how they interpret the facts. The defense attorney must deal with the charges as they are brought. So if the case is brought as a misdemeanor the defense attorney must deal with it as a misdemeanor. Generally, under the facts you have described this may include, but is not limited to, attempting to get it reduced to infraction. However, something you must take into consideration is that since this occurred on school grounds the DA's office may want to make an example of your son. They may want to send a message to other students about how serious the offense will be treated.

If your son pleads to a misdemeanor or is unfortunately convicted of a misdemeanor there are other options available to you. You could petition the court to seal a minor's record so it would not show up. The other option available is that in the future it can be expunged. It won't completely disappear but it would show up as dismissed after conviction. If you have any questions about this please feel free to contact my office through our web site at www.brianmcginitylaw.com . We will be happy to explain it more completely.

Good luck