Question -was busted for solicitation in LA county during a sting-do I need an attorney ?The cops said its not a big deal (misdemeanor) and that its just a fine .What is the truth ?Dont have a lot of money -

plead guilty, then later it may come back to haunt you as its on your record;

better to pay for a good attorney fight it or have him get it dismissed, or at least get a deal where if you plead guilty and get no new offenses for 12 months, it gets expunged.

that you are not getting your legal advice from the very police that arrested you. I am sure, or at least I hope you know, they do not have your best interests at heart.

Do yourself a faver, get a lawyer. If you can afford to hobby, you can afford at least a consultation.

Any suggestions on how to find an attorney that wont rip me off ?I am willing to pay for a consultation but I dont want to make it worse ny getting a bad attorney .

How much should something like this cost from an attorney ?

My lawyer buddy has always told me the best way to find a good attorney if you don't already have one is go to the courtroom and observe the lawyers in action and then pick the one you think is most competent.  

So go to the courtroom where other Solicitation offenses are being heard and find out which lawyer you feel is the best.  I used this tactic when I got busted for something I don't care to mention and I was not local to the area and it worked great!

In most states they feel humiliation is the best tactic for punishment. You might find your mugshot on their website.

Always fight tooth and nail. Lawyers will sell your ass out and tell you to plead guilty. I used to work at a courthouse and have seen it myself in offices where the attorneys were talking to the prosecutors.
They laugh and don't care and just take your money. Call escort agencies and strip clubs and find out who represents them to get some one who will actually fight for you. You can also represent yourself and plead not guilty if you cannot afford an attorney.
A lot a charges like this can be dismissed if you keep denying that you are guilty no matter what they present.

I am not a lawyer but I have seen them in action lots.

I do background checks for prospective employees all the time.  Even minor offenses of juveniles are in the records.  "I will get it expunged for you." is the lawyer equivalent of "I won't cum in your mouth"

I always get, when I ask why a prospect didn't include the offense in his application, "My lawyer was supposed to expunge it and I was under 18".   My response is sorry you lied and you are fired if I had hired the person.

Out of curiosity, why would you do further checks on someone's resume/ cv once they're hired anyways unless you were looking for a reason to fire him? Generally, a lie on an application isn't a big deal unless you're already in deep shit.

I've had jobs and haven't mentioned being arrested for drunk in public at age 18 (damn wild frat party,) but while it may be on my criminal record still, the case was dismissed. So legally, while I was arrested and it's a lie to say I was never arrested, I was never convicted, so why would I want to make that available?

Katie