Clay County student charged with misdemeanor, accused of filing false police reports

A girl who claimed to have been pulled over by people pretending to be police officers has been arrested, accused of making the entire story up. The high school student, 18, is now charged with filing a false police report, according to a report in the Florida Times-Union. The charge is a first-degree misdemeanor, punishable by up to one year in the county jail. Even though she is still in high school, because she is 18 her case will go through adult court and not juvenile court. Clay County Criminal Cases can only be handled in juvenile court if the defendant is 17 years old or younger. The state can choose to charge younger people as adults, but the system does not work in reverse, even if the defendant is in high school.

Police said the girl called police about being stopped by two men who had flashing police lights and then tried to get into her car, the newspaper reported. Police investigated the case and continued to ask questions of the girl, who stuck by her story, the newspaper reported. Eventually, at the last of the series of interviews, police said the girl admitted the story was false and shared what really happened, the newspaper reported.

In Clay County Misdemeanor Cases like this, part of the motivation for police in publicizing the case is to let people know there are consequences for lying to police and wasting taxpayers’ time and resources investigating false claims. While the maximum penalty for the Clay County Misdemeanor Case the woman is charged with is the year in county jail mentioned above, that shouldn’t be what to look for in terms of the sentencing. In Clay County Misdemeanors Cases such as this, prosecutors are typically more interested in a sentence that has a form of punishment and also helps make the police department whole for the investigations. Options may be some form of community service, combined with repaying the sheriff’s office for all or part of the tax dollars spent during the investigation. These types of sentences are common in Clay County Misdemeanor Cases, especially those that involve atypical cases and people who may not have a long history of criminal conduct. Our Clay County Criminal Defense Attorney has represented hundreds of people on misdemeanor cases and knows the types of negotiated sentences that both work for the state and allow the defendant to accept responsibility, complete the assigned punishment and move on with his or her life.

If you or a loved one needs a criminal defense attorney in Jacksonville or the surrounding area, call The Mussallem Law Firm at (904) 365-5200 for a FREE CONSULTATION. Our Clay County Misdemeanor Crimes Attorney, Victoria “Tori” Mussallem, is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.