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Can you be Sentenced to Prison for Failure to Make all your Payments While on Probation? / Restitution / AVVO / Michael A. Haber, Esq. **ARRESTED / **305DUI

Q:     Chances of prison sentence for a first time technical violation in FL are?  I was placed on probation for Grand theft for 5 years. This will be the last year for me. I… Scroll down to read more!

November 21, 2014 / Michael A. Haber /
Q:     Chances of prison sentence for a first time technical violation in FL are?  I was placed on probation for Grand theft for 5 years. This will be the last year for me. I was ordered $19k in restitution. 2000 hours of community service and random drug tests. The first two years were difficult since I couldn’t find a job because of background checks I actually lived in a homeless shelter for almost a year. I eventually found a good job and have been faithfully making my payments. I’m ordered to pay $154 and I pay $500. I still owe about $4k. I have satisfied all the terms of my sentence except the remaining restitution which I don’t have time to do. I’m a student and a law abiding citizen. What are my chances of being sent to prison? My PO said she’ll strongly recommend a civil lien in lieu of jail time so I don’t know what to think.
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Michael Adam Haber

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Michael T Mackhanlall
Michael T Mackhanlall
Criminal Defense Attorney – Orlando, FL
Julian Vladimir Stroleny
Julian Vladimir Stroleny
Criminal Defense Attorney – Miami, FL
Nick Jay Dorsten
Nick Jay Dorsten
Criminal Defense Attorney – Clearwater, FL
George Crosby Gaskell III
George Crosby Gaskell III
Criminal Defense Attorney – Stuart, FL
Markus Ankuan Sermons
Markus Ankuan Sermons
Criminal Defense Attorney – Jacksonville, FL
Robert Jason De Groot
Robert Jason De Groot
Criminal Defense Attorney – Deltona, FL

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Answered . There is no such thing as a debtor’s prison in the US or FL. That said, if you willfully and substantially fail to comply with the conditions of your probation – including making court ordered payments – then a violation can be filed and, if the court finds that you both willfully and substantially failed to comply then you can be incarcerated.

But in order to incarcerate you for failure to pay the court must first hold a hearing and afford you due process, including a right to present evidence that your failure to make your Court Ordered payments was not willful – that is to say that you could not (not that you chose not to) make the payments. If you truly could not then your violation should not be considered “willful”, and without that necessary component you cannot be violated and incarcerated.

The Court has other alternatives to jailing you; namely it can choose to extend your probation (so as to afford you more time to pay) or it can convert your payments into what is referred to as a “criminal order” (a non-dischargeable debt which you can be held to pay even after your probation is terminated).

All of this said, if you know that you will not be able to make your payments (as it appears from your question) then you will be best advised NOT to wait for your PO to violate you and instead you should consider causing the matter to be brought before Judge beforehand – thereby hopefully impressing your Judge by your preemptive demonstration of a respectable level of acceptance of responsibility.

If you truly cannot make your payments and if you have a lawyer then you should discuss this with her / him and have a preemptive motion filed; if not then you should consider asking your PO if s/he will assist you to get the matter in front of the Judge now, as opposed to waiting for an imminent violation.

Either way so long as you are not spending your money on superfluous things and you are truly strapped for cash (and given your tragic familial issues) then I am confident that the good Judges of the 15th Judicial Circuit will show some compassion and understanding to your situation.

I hope that I have been helpful in answering your question.

First, second and third: No attorney-client relationship exists by virtue of any Q&A with Michael A. Haber, Esq. on Avvo. Fourth: Anything that you post on Avvo (or on similar sites) or on any social media is by its nature public. It is essentially an admission / confession and can be introduced into evidence as a statement against your interest in a subsequent legal proceeding. Once posted you lose any reasonable expectation of privacy, so, as this is an open forum (with no privilege attached), please be extra careful when considering what to post online (forewarned is forearmed.)
For more than 23 years Michael A. Haber, P.A. has been providing creative, effective and zealous advocacy and counsel in cases ranging from DUI to drug trafficking and from misdemeanors to first degree murder.  

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Michael A. Haber

At Michael A. Haber, P.A. "it's all about reasonable doubt"! Whether in State or Federal Courts, Michael A. Haber, P.A. strives to ensure that his client's rights are respected and that his clients receive top-tier legal representation and counsel. For more than a quarter of a century I have striven to make Michael A. Haber, P.A. a business that custom tailors its services to meet the needs of the client. This incorporates such things as (but is not limited to) doing my best to meet clients at their convenience (as opposed to mine), in locations and at times which are mutually convenient (sometimes at their homes, places of business, independent ground - having free wifi and excellent coffee any Dunkin Donuts always works for me - and occasionally even at odd hours), structuring fees to reasonably accommodate the parties, making myself personally available to the client as close to 24/7 as is possible and, perhaps most importantly, giving careful and comprehensive consideration to both micro and macro issues in a given case so as to be able to agree upon and effort toward a viable litigation objective. This is why I refer to Michael A. Haber, P.A. proudly providing "boutique criminal defense litigation" (being "a small company that offers highly specialized services"), and this is a large part of Michael A. Haber, P.A.'s mission statement Accordingly, Michael A. Haber, P.A. has provided personalized and boutique legal services to both individuals and entities, primarily in the South Florida area, since 1991. With no history of professional discipline whatsoever, Michael A. Haber, Esq. zealously advocates his client's interests and custom tailors his services to meet each client's particular situation, needs and desires. Toward that end Michael A. Haber, Esq. makes himself directly available to his clients whether in person, over the phone (305-381-8686 or Toll Free 1-888-SHARK-8-1), by cell, verbally or text (305-798-2220), by e-mail ([email protected]) on Facebook ( http://www.facebook.com/haberpa ), on Twittter, (@Sharkjy910) on AOL/IM (Sharky910), and also why I consistently add information to the public on both the Michael A. Haber, P.A. Criminal Michael A Haber PA Criminal DUI Defense Litigation Miami Blog (http://www.habercriminallaw.blogspot.com/) and with my "Webisode" series on YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/c/MichaelHaberLaw), whcih currently features 222 briegf VideoFAQ's on a variety of Criminal Defense, DUI and BUI related topics. When you hire Michael A. Haber, P.A. you get Michael A. Haber, Esq.! And remember, at HaberPA, it's all about reasonable doubt!

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  • positive review  Top notch, very skilled, and highly attentive. Mr. Haber is a fantastic criminal defense attorney.

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    July 26, 2017

  • positive review  Thanks again. You are second to none when it comes to defending your clients. For that, I thank you

    Leo Gonzalez Avatar Leo Gonzalez
    April 10, 2017

  • Excellence in criminal defense. Very informative And upfront of wiyh your crimanal defense

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    April 11, 2016

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