Legal Question in Criminal Law in Illinois

I had my 2nd house fire in April 2012, the state fire marshall was on scene and questioned myself and my son. At the end of the questioning my father and I was informed by the fire marshall that the cause of the fire was from my car being hot and accerlerating the items in my garage. The insurance company attempted to say that it was arson but had no reason nor evidence besides stating that my house was in foreclosure. My son & I evacuated the house with me carrying my daughter (1) and our dog in towels. Today almost 2 years later I was served with a subpoena at work for my son to appear in court and testify although he is only 9 years old. Is this legal and what are they attempting to do or say who or how this fire started? I don't want to scare my son by telling him he has to relive this event because he slept with me the first 9 months after the fire and just started sleeping by himself a few months ago. Im currently pregnant again 7 months, with a 9 and 2 year old, a single mom and I don't know what to do. Please help


Asked on 11/05/13, 12:25 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Stephen Messutta

This is way too complicated and incomplete at the same time. Children can be subpoenaed to testify in court hearings. The fact that they are young just means they are supposed to be treated appropriate for their age. But they are ALSO entitled to have their own attorney (at your cost I'm afraid unless there are special circumstances). As to when they have to appear, again this is something that is usually worked out dependent on everyone's schedules but sometimes court hearings require specific attendance. You can try this on your own but it sounds like you could use an attorney's help to make your way through the system.

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Answered on 11/05/13, 1:33 pm


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