In trouble now - Please help

[introublenow]

I have been charged for retail theft and been issued a ordinance violation.this is a first time offense.I live in IL. I have a mandatory court appearance on this case. I have not got a court date yet.

Now, my company is filling for a GC for me.How will this effect my background check? will this be a setback to my record? please let me know what i should do? should i plea guilty or not-guilty? will this case come up in the background check during the GC process? can i avoid this? and will my employer be notified?

Please help me I am in trouble now.

[john.jasong]

Hi,

First thing is don't plead guilty. Try to get an attorney and since this is a First Offense there are fair chances of getting the CASE Dismisseda nd get a probation. So this will help you a lot. But if you plead guilty , you are convicted and you will have bad remark for life long.

So try to get an attorney first ASAP.

[Attorney_6]

Have the criminal attorney get input from an immigration attorney regarding the impact of various options that might be available.

The arrest will have to be revealed on the I-485---it asks questions about arrests etc. The case will end up having an in-person interview at the local office.

We have articles about the potential impact of shoplifting on immigration status and benefits on www.Murthy.com. Sometimes, this type of charge is a HUGE problem, and in other situations---depending on procedures, maximum sentences, and plea deals--- it can be resolved.

While it is understood that sometimes people are charged without actual stealing anything, for the most part, this problem is entirely avoidable.