What's the trouble?
David is drunk. His mate's barbecue started at midday and ended early when neighbours complained of drunken youths throwing bottles into the street. The police have just brought him home.
Ask your son to wait in a different room while you talk to the officers. Write down their names and contact phone numbers and briefly record their version of events. Ask whether David has been arrested, and if so whether and when he is due to appear in court.
David is only 15, so police may not have charged him with an offence, choosing instead to report the matter to Youth Aid for follow-up.
You might want to wait until morning to get David's side of the story. But when he does tell you, take notes of this as well - they can be invaluable to a solicitor or to David at a later date.
When talking to the police and to David, try to establish exactly what happened. What did David do? How did the police respond? Who else was there?
If David faces charges or is unhappy with the way he has been treated, he should seek legal advice. It's not always obvious when the law has been broken, and by whom. For example, if he got into a stolen car, it is an offence if he knew it was stolen, but not if he didn't.
Sometimes it's legal for police to make an arrest, and sometimes it's not. A lawyer can advise.
You can choose to consult a criminal lawyer on David's behalf, but be prepared to pay an hourly rate of anything from $150 to $500, plus GST. Free legal advice is available through community law centres for those unable to afford their own lawyer.
If David is heading for Youth Court, he will be assigned a state-funded lawyer called a "youth advocate". He will appear in Youth Court as soon as practicable following his arrest. Youth Court is closed to the public.
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