5 Advantages of Hiring a Criminal Defense Attorney
- They Can Stop Charges from Being Filed
You’ve heard the advertisements, “If you’ve been arrested – you need a lawyer!”. Those ads are more than just marketing ploys for attorneys. Just because you’ve been arrested on suspicion of a crime doesn’t mean you’ve actually committed one or that prosecutors will have enough evidence to formally charge you. By hiring a criminal defense attorney immediately after being arrested, you can ensure your rights are being protected throughout the preliminary investigation process.
When you hire representation early, you have someone on your side that you can disclose all the details of your story to in confidence, who can then compare those details with the evidence and witness testimony prosecutors have against you, and determine whether they have enough evidence to charge you, and if that evidence is strong enough for a conviction. By being involved before charges are filed, it increases the likelihood of having your charges lessened, dropped, or even plea bargained before formal filing. These options are greatly reduced after formal charges have been filed through the court system.
- They Know the Law
Shortly after your arrest, law enforcement will attempt to interrogate you. If you haven’t already obtained representation, now is the time to request an attorney. During the interrogation process, law enforcement can use anything you say, no matter how innocent, to help further their case against you. Because they are trained in the law, they can sometimes use sneaky tactics to make you incriminate yourself; all the while staying within the confines of the law.
Having a criminal defense attorney with you during interrogations means you have someone who is equally, if not more so, trained in the law. They can ensure that you only disclose information that won’t hurt you, and ensure that interrogators only use ethical tactics during the course of their investigation. Your criminal defense attorney can also ensure that prosecutors have sufficient evidence to charge you, and that evidence and testimony used in their decision to prosecute is obtained legally and ethically.
- It is Their Job to Protect Your Best Interests
When you’ve been arrested, and before you have an attorney, no one in the system has a duty or concern with protecting your best interest. Law enforcement and prosecutors have a loyalty to the court system, proving guilt, and closing cases.
Hiring our criminal defense attorney is the only way to secure someone besides yourself, that knows the law, can speak to prosecutors on your behalf, and has a bound duty to make decisions in your best interest.
Because being arrested under any circumstance is stressful and upsetting, you may be inclined to tell your side of the story in an attempt to clear things up quickly and get home. By doing this you run a large risk of inadvertently hurting your case. Having a criminal defense attorney involved is like having a personal spokesperson to provide a barrier between you and the people who are looking to press charges against you. They can advise you on what to say, what information is disclosed during interrogations, or advise against speaking to prosecution or authorities altogether.
If your case does make it to the court room, your private defense attorney will educate you every step of the way. They will provide you with detailed explanations of possible options, the pros and cons and why those options are or are not recommended. Having private counsel guarantees that you will never be attempted to get “sold” on a deal to appease the court, nothing will be advised if it doesn’t benefit you or your case in some way.
- They Can Negotiate On Your Behalf
Just like you would see a doctor when you’re sick, or take your car to a mechanic when it’s broken down; when you have a legal problem- you get a lawyer. Rarely does a defendant without representation successfully argue their own case. Going up against prosecutors trained in the law alone, while your freedom is on the line, is a recipe for disaster. You’re almost ensuring that you serve some jail time especially for violent crimes, or end up paying massive fines, which could have been used to secure a private attorney and walked away with better results.
Experienced criminal defense attorneys can do what you can’t. They can analyze the facts of your case, witness testimony, tactics used to obtain evidence; they can obtain medical records, hire chemists and investigators on your behalf, and find room for reasonable doubt in the prosecution’s case against you. And, unlike a criminal defendant, they can speak directly to the prosecutor’s office and negotiate plea bargains, the lessening of charges, or have charges dropped before you ever set foot into a courtroom.
- They Can Help You After You Leave the Courtroom
If your case does indeed make it to see a courtroom, having a criminal defense attorney can reap benefits even after your trial has concluded.
An attorney can guide you through the appeals process, answer any questions you may have about conditions placed on you by the court, be a point of contact during the service of probation, and file for expungement if your case is eligible.
Early Intervention is Key
Giving your criminal defense attorney the ability to get involved in your case from the moment you’ve been arrested gives your defense team the best chance of having any possible charges dropped or reduced including domestic violence charges.
Being arrested is stressful, but nothing relieves that stress quite like having a compassionate, educated attorney on your side to fight the battle for you, and keep you informed throughout the process.
Even if you have already been charged with a crime, it is still imperative to obtain legal representation so your attorney can get to work reviewing your case, and finding room to negotiate your charges.
Though hiring legal representation early in the game is best, hiring an attorney at any stage from arrest to court date will greatly increase your chances of a favorable outcome. Shield Criminal Defense Law has a team of experienced criminal defense attorneys in the Los Angeles area ready to help protect YOU. Give us a call 24 hours a day for a free consultation at (213) 514-8732