Helping Your Child With Their DWI Case
If your teenaged or young adult child has been charged with a DWI, you might be upset with them and their choices. While you might want to teach them a lesson and have them deal with the ramifications of a DWI on their own, this might not be the best decision. This is actually a time in your child's life that they will need your support the most. Here are three things that you can do to help support your child through DWI charges.
1. Put Yourself in Your Child's Shoes
If your child has spent some time jail or has interacted with police, they might be so scared and tired that they have already learned their lesson. While you might be angry with your child for getting charged with a DWI, they need your help and understanding the most at this time. Be calm with your child and let them talk with you about what happened. Getting started looking at your child's charges with a lawyer will be your next step, so don't waste too much time being angry.
2. Sort Out Representation
As with any criminal charge, it is time to act fast to find your child legal representation to review and possibly fight their DWI charges. Sometimes first-time offenders can plead down charges to a reckless driving offense. There are quick deadlines in filing paperwork and getting your child's case ready, so finding a DWI defense attorney should be your priority. Your child will most likely need your help in the process, and might not fully understand the ramifications of pleading guilty to a DWI arrest. If you can find a lawyer that will be in your child's corner, your child will be able to put up a better fight in and out of court.
3. Work Out Finances
Your child most likely will not have the financial means to get through DWI charges successfully, and might need your help. If you are worried that you cannot afford attorney's fees, most law firms can help come up with alternate agreements or payment plans. Don't risk your child's future by not looking into the right representation. Having a DWI conviction on your child's record can cost your child a lot more in the long run than the financial burden of a lawyer today.
Getting over a DWI charge and possible conviction is something that your child might not have the means or emotional maturity to work through. Be there for your child and help them through this stressful time. Finding a DWI defense attorney and offering emotional and financial support can hopefully ensure that other areas of your child's life, such as school and employment, aren't affected currently or in the future.
To learn more, contact a DWI defense attorney like David A. Mansfield.
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