Legal Question in Criminal Law in Florida
Recently I was charged with Uttering Forged Instrument and Grand Theft. The charges were filed by Wachovia Bank based on deposition of victim/witness saying I stole and forged a check. The check was legitimate, as I had sold my car to the person. I was not in the country to defend myself against investigating detectives, and the victim/witness who filed the charges knew that I would not be. The charges were finally nolle prossed as there was no evidence of wrong doing and the witness just happened to vanish,after being compensated by the bank for 3,500.00 (out of my account,which was then closed) and my car. My questionsions are: 1) How can I go back to court to have this disposition changed to not-guilty. 2) The total amount of damages is more than $5.000. What is the best way to seek damages?
2 Answers from Attorneys
To answer your first question, you are presumed innocent, and since the charges were dismissed (nolle prossed), you are not guilty. Of course, you may be asking how to get it off your record. You may be eligible to get the charge expunged from your record so that it doesn't show up on background checks. You should call an attorney to find out if you are eligible. (Also on my website, there is a section on sealing/expunging that may answer some of those questions). Now, to answer your second question, you can file suit against the person the alleged victim in the case. That is the best way to seek damages but if he is somehow vanished then trying to collect may be a problem. You should talk to a CIVIL attorney to see what your best option is.
Dismissal of the case is your best outcome in criminal court and there's really nothing left to do at this point except expunge the record, if you are eligible. Briefly, you can not have any convictions on your record, plus never have sealed or expunged a record before. And I agree with the above - if you want to seek damages from the alleged victim, you should seek advice from a civil attorney.
If you're interested in clearing your record (which you still have, even if the charges were dismissed) - please feel free to get a free eligibility evaluation from my site at www.ExpungeRecordFlorida.com
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