Here in McLennan County, if you are a first-time offender, you may be able to avoid jail time.
The Pretrial Intervention Program aims to give people who made a mistake a second chance. It is a chance to prove you are a law-abiding citizen who made an error of judgment.
As the name suggests, this happens before your case has a chance to go to court. To be eligible for the program, you must admit you are guilty of the charges you are accused of.
If accepted into the program, once completed, you will have no criminal record for the charge you were accused of, as the case will be refused and dismissed. However, you may still have the record of your arrest on file, which, after a waiting period, you may choose to have expunged.
You usually have to pay a fee to enter the program. Exactly what type of plan you follow will vary on the charges brought against you. If, for example, you were charged with alcohol-related offenses, proving you can stay off the drink, taking regular breath tests may be a requirement.
If you were arrested for fighting, anger management classes might be part of your program. If you suffer from mental health issues, they may design your program to help with this. A program may also include community service work.
If you face criminal charges, pretrial intervention may be an option available to you. An experienced Waco attorney can help you decide your best course of action.
