The public defender assigned to my case was a young, overworked woman, and spoke so fast I barely heard what she was saying.“First offense, no priors, well, no record at all actually, and given your… condition, I was able to work out a deal with the prosecutor,” she shuffled papers without looking at me. “Seventy-two hours served counts as time served. You plead guilty to petty theft, pay a fifty-dollar fine when you’re able, and you walk today.”“I don’t have fifty pounds.”“Then you’ll work it off through community service. Twenty hours. Someone will contact you.” She finally met my eyes. “Look, I know you claim to have amnesia, and maybe that’s true. But the city doesn’t have resources for someone in your situation. No ID, no address, no income. You’ll need to figure that out on your own.”“How am I supposed to,”“There’s a shelter on Fifth Street. St. Mary’s. They don’t require ID. Start there.” She stood, gathering her files. “Good luck.”And that was it. Three days in a cell, a
Last Updated : 2025-11-16 Read more