Crimes are committed everywhere, and this lands many people in the hands of the law. Some are innocent while others are guilty. But it is difficult to land a jail term before you are proven guilty. A criminal defense lawyer works at this point by representing the accused in court.
That is why you need the law firm to provide you with the best criminal lawyer. In case you are unable to provide one for yourself, the state provides you with a public defense attorney whose role is the same as that of a privately hired defense attorney. So, what roles will these attorneys play in general?
Assessing Your Case
The work of a defense attorney begins way before you step into the courtroom. A criminal defense lawyer investigates all issues revolving around your case before representing you in court.
In this instance, they question the state witnesses, analyze police reports, and look into crime scene reports so as to gather all the required information in defense of your case. Some law firms use private investigators to get information while some lawyers do the investigation themselves.
Strategize
With all the information at hand, your defense lawyer can decide the underlying odds of having you convicted or acquitted. At this point, your criminal defense lawyer will strategize on all the possible outcomes. During the case, the lawyer can convince the jury about their client’s innocence and create doubt around the case for an eventual acquittal. Last of the strategies is convincing you to accept a plea bargain.
Handles Pleas
Sometimes, the best solution to your case is a plea bargain. This is where the state lawyer or court prosecutor requests your defense attorney to plead with you to accept a guilty plea to a lesser fault than the one you are accused of. This reduces the sentence while, at the same time, saves the state time and money. In this instance, your criminal defense lawyer has to analyze whether it will benefit you or if there is a better chance of approaching the case otherwise.
Tries the Case
If you accept the bargain, the case stops at this point and you are charged as per the agreement. But if the case has to head to court, your criminal defense lawyer has to try the case first.
This depends on whether a single judge or a jury will hear the case. In case of a jury, your lawyer is involved in the questioning, approving or rejecting the members of the jury to create a sympathetic panel for you. This process is called voir dire. The state prosecutor does the same.
Defending the Case
After doing all that, the defense lawyer will present all the evidence and argue the case for you, question the witnesses, and create all possible arguments. All this is aimed at having you exonerated. If this cannot happen, the lawyer will try and get an easier penalty for you.
Criminal defense lawyers are of great help to all the accused in a case. Whether privately hired or provided by the state, they help you to win your case or receive a lesser penalty than you deserve.