In order to achieve a good criminal defense, it is important to resort to a team of expert lawyers that will allow you to understand the different defense mechanisms that can be applied according to your case. Therefore, it is valuable that the defendant can first determine the conditions under which the event occurred, as well as its implications in the same, so that lawyers can establish an accurate strategy that fits the client's needs. In that sense, in this article we will explain 5 things you should take into account to have a good criminal defense in your judicial procedure.
1- Contact a lawyer with experience in cases similar to yours.
It is important that you use a team of lawyers with proven experience in criminal proceedings similar to yours. This is necessary, since in this way you will ensure a large part of the criminal defense you are looking for according to your specific needs. Remember that the way to prove their involvement in similar cases is through press releases, minutes and any other documents that specify their involvement. So in the first meetings with the legal team you should make sure of this experience, to better understand what legal avenues you can pursue in your criminal proceedings.
Lawyers should also prepare themselves in advance by studying cases, strategies and rulings that relate to your procedure. Therefore, by having a qualified person with previous experience, you can have an advantage when establishing the strategy to be used. Because your lawyer will know exactly which references to turn to and will be able to present you with several alternatives in a short period of time.
2- Establish the defense strategy
The defense strategies from one case to another are different, so it is important to have a preparation prior to the meetings with the prosecution or other agency that is overseeing the process. At this stage is the moment in which the defendant defines the way in which he/she will counteract the acts imputed by the plaintiff. At the same time it establishes the arguments by which the defense will be carried out as the case may be.
One of the most common strategies is the defendant's intent, in which the criminal defense demonstrates the defendant's thoughts or feelings about the crime to establish the defendant's intent. In these cases, the idea is to demystify charges of aiding and abetting or any other type of crime in which the defendant appears to be involved as a third party. Thus, it is only applicable and relevant in different scenarios where it can be demonstrated that the client did not intend to participate in the crime, even with evidence linking him or her to the crime.
3- Develop a general and a specific strategy
In order to have a good criminal defense, it is necessary to have two types of strategies, one general and the other particular. The first one refers to a strategy that covers the entire criminal procedure, that is, a strategy that can argue, according to the established objective, each piece of evidence, brief, diligence that is part of the process. With this your legal team will be able to build a concrete narrative that can help you to dismiss the charges for which you are accused.
In the case of the particular strategy, these are the arguments that seek to counter the particular accusations presented by the plaintiff. This is useful to dismiss the testimony of specific witnesses, so that the defendant's legal team can prepare in advance its response to such testimony.
4- Questioning the procedures used by the authorities.
Another strategy presented by a good criminal defense is the demonstration that the procedures employed by the authorities were unlawful and unfair. In this way, some of the evidence presented by the plaintiff can be disregarded and the consequences of the conviction can be alleviated. This can be achieved by the team of lawyers verifying the methods by which the authorities collected such evidence, even if it is testimonial. So that irregular circumstances can be proven that jeopardize the veracity of such evidence in the criminal proceeding.
For example, in a procedure where it was necessary to search a home, it must be demonstrated with sufficient evidence that the authorities did not have a warrant at the time of entering the property. In this way, it can be determined that the conditions under which the evidence was obtained were not in accordance with the law, and the evidence lacks legitimacy in criminal proceedings.
5- Never testify or testify to any fact while in detention
This is one of the main tips when identifying a good criminal defense. At the time of your arrest, your attorney should notify you that it is your right not to testify without a legal representative. Therefore, the accused must be polite, without generating controversy and sticking to this right to be able to control the environment and subsequent consequences after the arrest. This is advisable, since it often happens that in the middle of the procedure things are declared out of desperation or adrenaline of the moment. And this can have serious consequences at the time of launching defense strategies.
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