advice on felony charge

Anyone with advice on this one. I visited West Tennessee State Prison in March and during a vehicle search the officers found an opened bottle of vodka. Not my car, not my liquor, however I was driving the car. I was charged with "transportation of contraband into a penal facility" and at my arraignment was informed this was a class C felony with a possible sentence of 3-15 years. I am still reeling from this information but any advice would be greatly appreciated. The ADA refused to lower the charges, according to him there wasn't anything he could lower it to. I have NEVER been in trouble for anything other than a mis-communication about a ticket for an expired car tag that resulted in a suspension of my license that was amended post-haste.

I'm afraid there is little advice here other than to hire a good local criminal defense attorney and see what he can negotiate. A good lawyer can often negotiate a much better sentence than a bad one.

If you don't have the money, consult with your public defender about your options.

Perhaps your attorney can find a "lesser crime" to plea to that the prosecutor missed, or can negotiate a plea and a reduced sentence on the basis of the plea and that you are a "nice guy".

Unfortunately this, like many such situations are up to the prosecutor's discretion what to pursue. And they are looking for convictions, which improve their "job performance". Justice plays little in the equation.