3 Things You Need To Understand About Dealing With A Criminal Case

15 October 2017
 Categories: Law, Blog

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Those who face criminal charges can often find themselves at the mercy of the judicial system. If you face any criminal charges, you need to give your case the best possible chance. To do that, you need to understand a few things about dealing with criminal cases.

1. Understand, Not Doing Anything Is Not Going to Help You

Many people facing charges may opt to not do anything about it. This often happens when they're facing lesser, misdemeanor charges. Some who face larger charges may think there's nothing they can do about them. These people often take a plea bargain or voluntarily plead guilty.

You need to understand there's no situation in which you should do nothing about a criminal charge of any type. Unless an attorney says otherwise, you should always fight any charges that come your way. Even a small charge can affect you in many negative ways.

For example, losing your license behind a small charge can destroy your means of making a living. In addition, small charges add up. Most charges, from misdemeanor to felony, come with degrees of penalties. By fighting a charge, you can lower your potential penalties by a large amount.

2. Understand, Your Knowledge of the Law Isn't Absolute

Many people facing charges will look up information about those charges online or by asking others. You may even have various misconceptions about how the law works based on things you've seen on the news or saw on television. The problem with that is laws vary from place to place.

Even from one county to the next, the same law can have wildly different interpretations. In addition, laws change and evolve. You may think you're looking at a slap on the wrist, only to find out the same law from a year ago now comes with a mandatory jail sentence.

Really, only the people who practice law in your area will stay abreast of changes to the laws. Don't face a charge with faulty information. You need to know what you're dealing with.

3. Understand, You Definitely Need the Help of a Qualified Criminal Defense Attorney

Many people believe they don't need a lawyer. The truth is you absolutely need to speak to a criminal defense attorney about your charge. Even if it's a minor charge, an attorney can make all the difference between the maximum penalty and the minimum.

Your attorney will know the law, and how the courts typically deal with cases such as yours. They will know which defenses work, and which aren't worth considering. A local attorney may even have an established relationship with the court, and that can help a great deal.

You should speak to a criminal defense attorney even if you know beyond doubt you're innocent of the charges against you. An attorney, such as from The Fitzpatrick Law Firm, can inform you about possible eventualities from the case you never considered. They can also help you develop strategies for dealing with the case to achieve the best possible solution.