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Original poster

Sols need £20,000 initial payment to defend dh - money we do not hav

120 replies

puddytats · 31/05/2006 21:29

Got letter from the solicitors the other day with some info that the police used to charge dh (can already see discrepancies in what originally told and what is now in statements). They are happy to represent dh but need £20,000 upfront to start with and costs could rise to £60,000+.
WE DON'T HAVE IT
Mil is currently helping to pay all our bill and general living expenses.
My parents are paying for shopping, nursery, days/evenings out etc.
Fil in well off, not sure if he is willing to help out with legal fees. If he does not dh will have to plead guilty as we can not afford the legal fees. He will give us the answer at the weekend.
The fate of my family lies with my fil, if he pays dh can plead not guilty, if he doesn't when we return to court on 13th July he will have to plead guilty which means he will be in prision by the end of august.
I am so very scared.
Thankyou for listening again

OP posts:
foundintranslation · 31/05/2006 22:08

yes, fab post, soapbox.

foundintranslation · 31/05/2006 22:10

I'm off now puddy, but I am thinking of you all, and so are many other MNers. Keep us updated. xxx

soapbox · 31/05/2006 22:10

Puddytats - just catching up with what I have missed while I have been posting:)

You solicitor by now should have access to all of the evidence held by the prosecution - the process is known as discovery.

The investigation by the bank will be included in that evidence as well as any other information relating to your case.

You cannot be kept in the dark - it does not fit with the legal process of both sides having access to all of the evidence which is to be presented.

Perhaps your solicitor is waiting to be instructed before he starts the process of discovery?

Original poster
puddytats · 31/05/2006 22:11

The case is for more than £30k. Sfo are getting involved as it involves a pensions company. I do not know all the details as yet as the policehave not yet had to hand everything over.
I am with you soapbox. I would sell my soul to keep my dh out of prison
Dh is really struggling with the feeling that although he did not committ the crime, it is his fault that he is dragging everyone through this hell. He doesnot want our children homeless, all he can focus on is the quickest end and he feels that he cannot drap everyone through a court battle we have about a 5% chance of winning. He is as rock bottom Sad

OP posts:
Original poster
puddytats · 31/05/2006 22:13

Apparently our sols do not get everything until after the next cout apperance where dh has to enter his plea. All they get at the moment are the notes the cps got to decide wheether to prosecute or not?

OP posts:
foxinsocks · 31/05/2006 22:15

so your side has not done any investigating yet?

foxinsocks · 31/05/2006 22:16

I cannot see how pleading guilty at this point will help anyone

Original poster
puddytats · 31/05/2006 22:18

Dh way of thinking is the sooner he goes to prison, the sooner he will be out, all he can see is being away from his family for a period of time. He cannot see that we might win at the moment.
We have no right to investigate until he has been charged. All the time before the police are not inveestigting him but the crime committed. That is the legal system for you - pants

OP posts:
foxinsocks · 31/05/2006 22:23

I can see the way he's thinking but the main thing about fraud is that someone at the end of the whole process has benefitted from the actual fraud i.e. the person who ended up with the money once it went through your account (and obviously through some complicated account changes otherwise they would have picked it up by now).

Although the process of the money disappearing can be very complicated, somebody/something has ended up with the actual asset. Although it's passed through your account, it must be clear that you were not the end beneficiary and it seems strange that the SFO/police are not going after this person but your dh. Or they are not going on at your dh to find out who he was working with (if they suspect he had something to do with it).

TheMammy · 31/05/2006 22:32

This sux ass big time!

Hope they realise that your DH is innocent before they deptive your children of their father and make them sit through prison visits.. it's not nice!

Hope your FIL has a conscience that will not let him sit on his big fat wallet whilst you and your family suffer xxxxx

foxinsocks · 31/05/2006 22:33

might be worth getting him to the GP and arranging counselling if he is feeling really low

this could go on for ages and unfortunately, he needs to keep his wits about him

CountessDracula · 31/05/2006 22:36

nononono that can't be right

They can't make him enter a plea before discovery surely?????

NotQuiteCockney · 31/05/2006 22:39

Isn't that an initial plea? I'm pretty sure people go from not guilty to guilty between the initial bit and the proper trial? (Not a lawyer, not from this country, could be totally wrong.)

curlysmum · 01/06/2006 18:10

Hi Puddytats it really seems that you are being mis-informed by your solicitor. My partner was arrested and charged with a serious offence after my daughter was born, he was falsely accused by someone and they raided our house and charged him with very poor evidence. He did get a very good defence on legal aid but spent six -eight months without bail and with all his money, car frozen while we tried to get this sorted out . There is no way he should plead guilty .
I spent 6-8 months up and down with our daughter visiting him in prison which is no fun being searched by prison officers and sniffed by drug dogs , it is really dire . Our home was almost repossessed and we are still struggling to catch up with everything 3 years on. My partner has found it really difficult to find work. The case never made it to court and the case was dropped, the funny thing was the other person who instigated the whole thing was wanted by the police for a serious offence and they did'nt even check that out. It is very hard we are still trying to get compensation from the Police now via a Solicitors . Avoid pleading guilty , we had no help from our family as they had no money to give us , but I did put our flat up as security in the end.

Original poster
puddytats · 01/06/2006 20:37

Curlysmum, thanks for your words, it really is a horrible situation and i am so glad that your dh was found innocent in the end.
I am trying to remember this from memory but this is what we have been told so far:
DH attended magistrates court in June, the charges against him were read out and he was asked if he wanted to enter a plea, he said not at this time.
Our solicitors were then given the information that the cps had to press charges, this is basically a summery of the 59000 pages of information/evidence they have.
It is on this information (about 100 pages) that our solicitor and us have to decide on what plea we enter. I suppose the simple case is either you are guilty or innocent, you should plea that way.
We then return to court on the 13th June. Prosecution put forward their case and dh is then asked to enter a plea - he has to at this stage. If the magistrates decide there is a case to answer a date is then set for the trial - depending on which way dh pleads. It is at this point that the police are under obligation to give our solicitors everything they think is relevent to our defence. They do not have to give us full 59000 pages. We can request further information that we believe could help us.
It will go to crown court as the money value is too high and the prosecution have already indicated that they want a sentance longer than 12 months - all the magistrates can impose.

OP posts:
Original poster
puddytats · 01/06/2006 20:38

sorry, 13 july

OP posts:
AngelaD · 01/06/2006 22:01

My Uncle served 18 months of a 3 year sentence and is on the sex offenders register for a crime he didn't commit so make no mistake there are innocent people in prison. He was very poorly advised by a solicitor to plead guilty and get it over with, there were other factors of course but his paid for solicitor was awful, he would have been better off sticking with legal aid.
I would rather hang than plead guilty to something I hadn't done, especially fraud.

slartibartfast · 02/06/2006 22:07

Does your sol believe dh?

Tortington · 06/06/2006 15:27

am so very sorry this is happening to you

xxxx

curlysmum · 12/06/2006 18:18

Hi Puddytats , hope everything is ok for tommorrow , I hope your father in law decide to help you with the costs etc

hovely · 19/06/2006 12:10

Puddytats, what an awful experience.

I was concerned about what you posted regarding legal aid and your solicitor. That is just not how I understood things to work.
have you seen this leaflet from the Legal Services Commission:
\link{http://www.legalservices.gov.uk/docs/cls_main/A_Practical_Guide_to_Criminal_Defence_Services_Apr_06.PDF\criminal legal aid}

if you are eligible on income grounds, you can choose your own solicitor from the list of those who do publicly funded work. There are some excellent firms around.
for example \link{http://www.edwardhayes.co.uk/index.htm\these guys} say they do legal aid work for serious fraud - I know nothing about them but they are obviously quite top-line (click on 'funding').
Legal Aid definitely covers the cost of a barrister in court and may cover expert reports where they are necessary.
if you don't qualify for full funding you may have to pay a contribution.

Otherwise you could try contacting the Bar Pro Bono unit
\link{http://www.barprobono.org.uk/navigate/home.html\here}

You can change your plea later - eg if your DH pleads not guilty now, then he gets all the disclosure documents, and he can take full stock of the evidence against him and change it to guilty later if appropriate (I so hope it is never appropriate!). As far as I know the drawback is that the defendant loses the benefit which would be attributed to him for pleading guilty right away, so it makes some difference in sentencing if he is convicted later.
good luck, my heart goes out to you all.

heavenis · 06/07/2006 07:44

Puddytats, hope your doing ok,be thinking of you next week.

heavenis · 13/07/2006 08:12

Puddytats, thinking of you today and sending positve vibes.

SherlockLGJ · 13/07/2006 08:19

Thinking of you.

prettybird · 13/07/2006 16:29

Thinking of you today.