Call A Criminal Defense Lawyer First if You Are Arrested
To begin with, keep in mind that the arresting officer(s) will continue to ask you questions. However, your criminal attorney will help you by suggesting you don’t answer their questions. He/she doesn’t want you saying anything that could hurt you in the court of law. Most cops will be quite causal and friendly but it’s a ploy for you to lower your guard. Remember they are looking for breaks in your story and will pay very close attention to all answers. Innocent statements you make can be turned against you and can hinder your attorney in court.
Getting a criminal defense attorney as soon as possible will also help at the arraignment. If you don’t have a lawyer there then you’re much less likely to get a bond, or you might end up paying more than normal. Choosing the right attorney may make it possible to get your client released simply by promising to attend court. A criminal attorney can dramatically help your chances and certainly won’t do you any harm.
In order for your criminal defense attorney to provide the best representation in court, they’ll need to investigate your case. This will include speaking to witnesses, getting information from the arresting officers and other ways of getting the whole story together. Depending on the type of case you’re up against, it might be essential that your attorney is able to handle these preliminary investigations within days of your arrest. You don’t want to lose important evidence simply as a result of not having called a lawyer soon enough.
When you have legal representation, the entire process can be less scary and confusing. No one suspects they’ll be arrested and the majority of people have no idea how the entire arrest and arraignment process works. You’ll stay in the criminal process loop when you have an experienced legal counsel fighting for you. They’ll let you know what options you have and know what will happen.
When you are choosing a criminal defense attorney you must make sure that you are choosing one which will represent you the best. Make sure that they have handled and had success with cases which were similar to yours in the past. You also need to choose an attorney who won’t judge you because you will need to divulge some pretty sensitive information. You’re the customer and the attorney will be working for you, make sure you choose wisely and get someone you really like.
While being arrested can be a terrifying situation, hiring the right lawyer can give you the peace of mind that your case is being handled effectively. Having an attorney on your side from the beginning means you won’t accidentally incriminate yourself, you’ll get the best possible results at arraignment and any investigation that needs to be done will be handled swiftly.