Why You Need to Hire a Criminal Attorney After Being Arrested

When you are placed in a jail cell after being arrested, it will seem as if life as you have previously known it is over. To make matters worse, police have told you of the consequences that could result if you are convicted of the crime, such as an extensive prison sentence, large fines, and the humiliation of having a criminal record. However, despite what you may be feeling and what you have been told, the case against you is not open and shut, nor do you need to start talking to police whenever they desire your presence. Instead, you should gather your courage and hire an experienced criminal attorney to guide you through the criminal justice process.

You Have Many Options

Although the police who arrested you and the prosecutor who is in charge of your case want you to think otherwise, you do have many options available to you after being arrested. Once you have hired a skilled criminal attorney who has years of experience dealing with the criminal justice system, you will learn how you can decide to fight the charges against you in court, work with your attorney to strike a plea deal with prosecutors, or even see the charges against you dropped before you ever set foot inside a courtroom. Rather than give up hope as police and prosecutors hope you will do upon being arrested, listen to your attorney and make the best decision about your situation.

Circumstantial Evidence

Though the police may indicate to you that they have evidence against you that will guarantee a conviction, this is not always true. Actually, it is more likely the evidence used by police to bring charges against you is at best circumstantial, meaning they may only have a story or two from others who say you allegedly committed a crime. Also, even if police say they have physical evidence linking you to a crime scene, this also does not seal your fate. Many times, evidence becomes tainted as it makes it way from a crime scene to a forensics lab, meaning it is essentially useless. However, police and prosecutors will still try to use any evidence they can to convict you, even if they know it is suspect at best. To ensure your legal rights are always protected and the playing field is always level while your case works its way through the courts, rely on a criminal lawyer whose opinion you can always trust.

Guiding You Through Questioning

After being arrested, police are always eager to get suspects into an interrogation room to start talking, and you will be no exception. If you let this occur without having an attorney present with you at all times, just as it is stated you can in your Miranda rights, you will likely incriminate yourself and make it much easier for police and the prosecutor to get a conviction, even if their case against you is weak. Rather than giving them the upper hand in these situations, always hire an attorney immediately after being arrested so they can be with you during questioning. While it may not sound important to you at the time, having an attorney with you will mean you can be advised when to answer or not answer specific questions, told of your rights during the interrogation, and make an informed decision as to how you wish to proceed.

Support for You and Your Family

While you are of course stressed out after being arrested, so too is your family. In fact, your family members may be more upset than you are, since they may know little about what is going on with your case. If you don’t hire a criminal lawyer as quickly as possible after your arrest, this stress will only continue to build for your family, and police and prosecutors will do nothing to ease their burden. By choosing to have an attorney on your side from day one, you and your family can get emotional and moral support from start to finish, and your family can also be kept in the loop as to how your case is progressing.

Not Letting You Languish

If you tell the court you cannot afford an attorney and allow a public defender to be appointed as your legal counsel, don’t expect to be getting out of your jail cell in the near future. Since the caseloads of public defenders are massive, your case will be one of many that they will be dealing with at any given moment. Because of this, they will not give your case immediate attention and make sure it does not get bogged down within the system. As a result, you could be sitting in jail for weeks and weeks. However, if you hire an attorney who is determined to fight for you, they can help arrange bail, quickly file paperwork with the court, and make sure you don’t simply languish in a jail cell day after day.

A Team Working on Your Case

Once you have knowledgeable legal representation from a criminal lawyer, you can know there will be an entire team of professionals working to help you regain your freedom and reputation. From additional attorneys and paralegals to private investigators, your lawyer’s team can examine evidence, interview witnesses, read police reports, and contact expert witnesses to testify on your behalf in court. In doing so, your defense becomes much stronger, giving you a much better chance of winning in court.

By choosing to fight for your freedom rather than give prosecutors an easy road to a conviction, you may find yourself leaving court with an acquittal or seeing charges dropped. To get started, contact a criminal lawyer today.