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Criminal Defense

Criminal defense is the representation of one that has been accused of a crime. The practice of criminal defense involves many different levels of service to the client. The attorney for the accused is obligated to do everything possible, within the rules of law, to advance the interests of their’ client. This may take different forms depending on the case. In some cases, the attorney may pursue a not guilty verdict at trial. In other cases, the accused will be better served by having the attorney negotiate a plea agreement on his behalf.

Evaluating the Prosecutor’s Evidence

The attorney’s first step is generally to evaluate the evidence that the government has brought against the defendant. Every case must be evaluated from trial backwards. In other words, the tactics chosen by the defense attorney will often be governed by what the anticipated result at trial will be. In a case where the prosecution has overwhelming evidence of guilt, the lawyer for the accused may not challenge the case, but instead will work on developing “mitigation,” or information that will inspire the judge not to impose a severe penalty at the sentencing in the case. In cases where the evidence of guilt is weak, the attorney may advise the client to go to jury trial, and challenge the prosecutor’s case. As you can see, the defense attorney’s initial evaluation of the District Attorney’s case will be very influential when determining the best approach to the case.

Investigation

Criminal Defense cases often involve investigation. The police that investigated the case and made the arrest may have been wrong about the case. They may have overlooked evidence, or believed a witness that was not being truthful. The attorney for the accused must never simply assume that what the police have written in their report is accurate or complete. Turning up other information will often disprove the initial police reports.

The defense attorney, not the client, must decide what, if anything, to investigate. The amount of investigation that is performed at the request of the defense attorney can range from none at all to a very large amount. This may depend on the resources of the client, as the client is the one who must pay for the costs of investigation. Or it may be that nothing will be gained from the investigation of a case. The amount of investigation may depend on the seriousness of the charge. For example, the defense of a homicide case is likely to be much more extensive than for a speeding ticket.

Filing Motions

The defense may or may not file motions during the course of representation. A motion is a request for a court order regarding some aspect of the case. Either the defense or the prosecution can file motions, and must generally do so before the motions deadline that has been imposed by the court.

Motions may be filed for many different reasons. The attorney may file a motion to suppress (exclude from trial) evidence collected in violation of the client’s constitutional rights, or a motion to demand the prosecutor to turn over evidence that should be within their’ possession. Motions can be filed for any reason, even to request that the client be allowed to leave the state while the case is pending.

Motions can play an important tactical role in the defense of a criminal case. The attorney may even make a tactical decision not to file motions at all, if the benefit of doing so is outweighed by the cost. Often however, motions hearings may be the defense attorney’s only opportunity to examine witnesses under oath, and establish a record of the witness’s statements. This record of statements can then be used to impeach the witness if they later deviate from what they have previously stated.

Plea Negotiations

A criminal case comes to a conclusion in one of three ways. The conclusion of the case either involves a dismissal of the charges, a plea of guilty by the defendant, or a trial verdict (guilty or not guilty). While dismissal’s do occur, this is the least common way for a criminal case to end. The most common way a case will end is through plea negotiations which result in a plea agreement. A plea agreement is much like a contract made between the defendant and the District Attorney. Each side of the contract gets a benefit. The prosecutor is given the benefit of no longer having to prosecute the case. The defendant is getting the benefit of some reduction in charge and / or a reduction in sentence.

Skilled criminal defense does not always involve a clever trial performance, as is so often depicted on television. Very often it is the defense attorney’s ability to negotiate effectively with the prosecutor to reach a resolution that minimizes the damage to the client. Information or evidence that the defense has been able to develop, which is exculpatory, will help the defense attorney during plea negotiations.

If plea negotiations fail, the criminal case will be set for jury trial. It is important to note that some kinds of cases do not involve plea negotiations, for obvious reasons. In a First Degree Murder case, for example, the District Attorney is very unlikely to be willing to resolve the case with any sort of plea offer, since life imprisonment is the only legal sentence that can be ordered by the court. However, if it is a death penalty case, plea negotiations may occur, since there could be a plea agreement to lower the penalty from death to life imprisonment.

Jury Trial

The United States Constitution and the constitutions of the various states, respectively, guarantee the right to trial by jury when jail is a possible sentence. Trial by jury is a trial where other citizens of the community in which the alleged crime occurred are expected to decide whether the defendant is guilty or innocent. The standard of proof required is “beyond a reasonable doubt.” This means that the District Attorney must present evidence that proves to the jury, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the defendant committed the offense.

Sentencing

Naturally, if the defendant is found not guilty at trial, there will be no sentence imposed by the court. However, after a guilty verdict (or if the defendant pleads guilty), the judge will impose a sentence. The judge will consider many factors before issuing a sentence, such as how bad the behavior or offense was, and whether the defendant has ever done the crime before. In some cases, the sentence is mandatory, and even the judge has no choice but to impose the sentence. Generally, a defendant is either sentenced to jail or probation. Probation is an opportunity for the defendant to avoid incarceration. In order to enjoy this privilege, the defendant will likely have to comply with court orders to undergo treatment, or do public service work.

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