The criminal justice system is a complex and intimidating process. Many people’s perception of the legal system is mostly formed based on highly inaccurate portrayals in movies, TV shows, and books. This misinformation can distort your understanding of the process and potentially cause you to make poor decisions regarding your legal circumstances. This post addresses some of the most common misconceptions surrounding criminal defense.
If You’re Innocent, Everything Will Work Out Fine
One of the most common myths we run into is the very mistaken belief that innocence is enough to guarantee that your case will resolve in your favor. The reality is much more complicated, though. Innocent people find themselves wrapped up in the criminal justice system every day. Mistaken identify, flawed evidence, and even outright lies entrap people into the system every day. Thinking that just walking into the courtroom and telling the judge you’re innocent is a surefire recipe for disaster. A skilled defense attorney is crucial, even for the innocent, to make sure that your rights are protected and the truth comes out.
Hiring an Attorney is Admitting Guilt
I typically spend many hours a week on the phone with people who are considering hiring a criminal defense attorney. One thing they often mention is a concern that simply by hiring an attorney they are creating the impression that they are guilty and have something to hide. The reality is that the right to legal counsel is a fundamental constitutional right guaranteed to all Americans. Hiring an attorney to guide you through the process is no different than hiring an accountant to help you with your taxes – no one would think you’re committing tax fraud just because you hire professional assistance. Instead, seeking the help of a trained professional just makes good sense. And just like taxes, with simple cases, such as traffic court, you may be able to go it alone. But with more serious and complicated matters, you need the assistance of a trained and experienced professional.
Public Defenders are Worse than Private Attorneys
Many people think that public defenders are not as competent as private attorneys. The reality is that most public defenders are skilled and dedicated attorneys who often do great work. Unfortunately, they’re also almost always severely overworked and short on time. The biggest advantage of hiring private counsel is that they almost always carry far fewer open cases at a time. This means that a private attorney has more ability to spend time on each specific case, and more time to spend discussing the case and various legal options with their clients. Hiring a private attorney may or may not result in a better outcome, but it will likely leave you with a better understanding of your case, the various options you have, and the outcome you achieve. Remember, when hiring a private criminal defense attorney, you’re paying for not only that attorney’s skill and expertise, but also their time.
All Criminal Cases Go to Trial
Most legal shows and movies focus on courtroom scenes, with dramatic testimony and shocking revelations. They rarely show the significant amount of work that goes on outside the courtroom. The reality is that almost all cases resolve without going to trial. Instead, negotiation and plea bargaining is by far the most common path to resolution. Going to trial is time-consuming, expensive, stressful, and most importantly, a big gamble. If a fair and acceptable resolution of the case can be reached outside of the courtroom, that’s almost always in the best interests of everyone involved, including the accused.
For those few cases that do go to trial, a skilled defense attorney is absolutely necessary. The rules of evidence and courtroom procedure are complex and require extensive training and experience. Don’t believe me? The Rules of Evidence can be found here, Rules of Criminal Procedure are here, and the Minnesota Sentencing Guidelines are here. Altogether, they’re nearly 400 pages long. And that’s only scratching the surface of what you need to know to successfully try a case.
Police Always Follow the Rules
Most police officers uphold the law with integrity. But they make mistakes just like everyone else. The rules that police officers have to follow are complex and difficult to apply. Even among attorneys, who dedicate their careers to understanding the law, it’s difficult to have a truly comprehensive understanding of complex topics such as search and seizure law. A police officer cannot be expected to fully understand criminal law when they also must be familiar with other topics such as medical training, weapons training, and much more. This means that mistakes happen. When those mistakes occur, it takes an experienced criminal defense attorney to recognize them and use them to the client’s benefit.
You Can Talk Your Way Out of Trouble
This is possibly the most dangerous myth on this list. Trying to talk yourself out of trouble nearly always results in the person digging themselves into a deeper hole. I’ve seen many, many cases where a person would have had a strong defense if they had just stopped talking. One reason for this is because you often don’t know in the moment which details of the situation are important, and you may inadvertently fill in the blanks for the investigating officer. Both the Minnesota and U.S. Constitutions guarantee your right to remain silent. Use it. And then hire an attorney to do your talking for you.
All Lawyers are the Same
Just like any group of people, not all lawyers are equal. Choosing the right criminal defense attorney can have a major impact on the outcome of your case. In some respect, lawyers are like doctors – both law and medicine are far too complex for any one person to fully understand. Therefore, we specialize. You wouldn’t go to a foot doctor to seek help with a heart condition. Instead, you’d find someone who specialized in the sort of care you need. Lawyers are very similar – the more areas you try to work in, the less you’re able to be an expert in each area. I would never agree to represent someone in a divorce case, because I have no experience with that type of case. When searching for a lawyer, it’s vital that you find someone whose area of expertise matches your type of case.
Having a better understanding of the criminal justice system can help you to achieve betters results in your case. Our legal system promises “Equal Justice For All” – the phrase is featured on the front of the U.S. Supreme Court Building. But this only happens if everyone is informed and able to make good legal decisions. Hopefully this post can help improve your understanding of the system. And as always, feel free to contact me if you have additional questions about how I can help you.
