Carr Wins Another, Helps Family Get On Back on Track

DIRECTED VERDICT GRANTED. Husband and wife charged with grand larceny - alleged to have stolen more than $1000 of fixed assets from a rental home. Both parents are working. Have two small children. Have been living with these charges for two years. Facing a felony conviction and 5 years in prison each.

After the close of the State’s case, the State conceded it could not prove there was a felony amount of items removed, and the Defense proved through land records that the alleged victim didn’t even have title to the real property. All charges dismissed!

This case should have always been a civil matter, and we at Carr Law Firm strongly feel that the criminal justice system (and the county’s tax dollars) was improperly used to punish a family in what was a simple landlord/tenant dispute. These two people should never have been criminally charged. The case never should have been sent to a grand jury - particularly not when we need to prioritize our backlogged criminal dockets with protecting the public from violent crime.

By being simply charged with a felony for the past two years, this husband/wife couple has had an incredibly hard time finding and keeping suitable employment to raise a family, applying for housing, seeking government benefits for their children - anything at all which requires a background check - which is almost everything these days. All for a case where the State didn’t even check to see if the “victim” had title to the property! Just because someone is charged - is not evidence of guilt.

State prosecutors and law enforcement have incredible power. This is often used for good, but can be abused. They can change people’s lives for years with the stroke of a pen on an affidavit. This is why we as a community must hold our elected leaders to account, get out and vote, know who/what it is you are voting for and always seek justice - for the haves and the have-nots.