Please Help!!! Caught Stealing and I'm scared!!

Please Help Me, I don't know where to turn for help! I just did the dumbest thing of my life yesterday! I was caught stealing from Walmart. I've NEVER done anything illegal in my life, I don't know what I was thinking. I've had a tough year (divorce, job/insurance loss) and I know that's no excuse, I know I shouldn't have but I needed the stuff to start a new job...that I will probably lose now since I'm a teacher! The Walmart people said they thing I did it for resale and they really want to go after me because it was alot of stuff not just one or two things! I don't want to go to jail!!! I'm so scared!!! Is there anyway to save me? I can't believe I did it...it doesn't even seem real! Please Help!?!

Make sure you get legal counsel (or at least the public defender) to try to keep this off your record eventually--jail time is probably not likely if your record is very clear now. But having that arrest and/or a conviction on your record will make job-hunting etc. more difficult. Often this could be negotiated down to some kind of court supervision etc. If it eventually appears it cannot be negotiated down, or you need to discuss this in more detail with senior counsel to review options etc., please let world law know...

you can have free council if you have no money. ask for councilling and help with dealing with your poverty. My girlfriend went to a councilling class on how to live without stealing with the salvation army and they didnt follow thru on the charges. If you were stocking up to sell your items. They have to prove it. All different sizes big and small would just be for you would it. In that case you still get a free lawyer but you might get communitity time and show the court your sorry and remoursefuly, but you might still have a record unless you tell the court that work your looking for needs a clean record and they might not put it oh there with a warning to you. lavisa