Melbourne Beach, FL Criminal Defense Law Firms & Lawyers

When the cops come around to talk to you, you must remain silent. You will probably be charged, but you may not be. If you are charged you need to get an attorney.

If the circumstances are as you describe, then he will need to get permission from the court, and to do that he will need a private criminal defense attorney.

It could be; but not definitely.  It is possible that they determined the amount of restitution was $6,100.  Florida law mandates the court order full restitution in all criminal cases.  It's possible the State Attorney's Office may have asked them if they would be willing to drop the charges if they received restitution.  However, be aware that they cannot drop charges; only the State Attorney's Office can drop charges.  However, the State Attorney's Office is unlikely to drop the charges unless the alledged victim/s agree to it.  If you proceed to trial and are convicted, you would be court-ordered to pay restitution.  However, you would be entitled at that point to a restitution hearing where evidence would have to be presented to show the accurate amount of restitution.  If you resolve the charge by a negotiated plea, it is likely any offer would include restitution also.  It, also, could be that the alleged victim/s was/were attempting to extort money from you.  However, much more information and facts would be needed to determine whether they could be charged with extortion.  Since charges currently are pending against you, you should not have direct contact with the alleged victim/s with regard to payment of money - or you could find yourself facing more charges.  Do not try to handle it on your own.  You should let your attorney know that you have been contacted regarding paying a sum of money and charges being dropped.  Any knowledgable, experienced criminal defense lawyer should be able to advise you as to how to proceed;  how to avoid any more charges being filed against you; and whether the alleged victim's actions may have been an attempt to extort money from you.  If you do not have an attorney, my best legal advice is to retain one as quickly as possible and let the attorney deal with this on your behalf.