Some Too Frequently Un-asked Questions

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Asked to come down to the station 

If you have been contacted by law enforcement personnel or other government actors, and  asked to come in to answer some questions in order to assist them in some kind of investigation, you should immediately consult with an experienced criminal defense attorney.  Since the state has no obligation to tell you anything about what they are really working on, you might be surprised by some of the questions they ask, and you might be suddenly tempted to withhold or falsify some small detail  that might seem to unnecessarily harm someone you do not want to harm, or to make you look guilty in some way. This "white lie" -- as a knowingly made false statement to police in an investigation (if a felony case), could result in you being charged and convicted of a felony crime like Obstructing Justice or Accessory after the Fact to a felony.  If you choose to speak with criminal investigators, you should be prepared to give truthful answers to any question you answer. So what if they get to a question to which your truthful response may tend to incriminate you?  Do you then plead the 5th Amendment and decline to answer that question?  Seems almost like an answer doesn't it?  You have a right to remain silent  and you can have an attorney present for questioning if you do choose to speak with investigators.  The decision to speak with an experienced criminal defense attorney beforehand about how this situation might be approached could end up being one of the best decisions you have made.

You may feel that showing any  hesitation to cooperate might put you under 

suspicion. This may or may not  be true. But even if you have not committed any crime that you know of, it is quite possible that  you are under suspicion, and that your simple answers to a few questions may provide investigators with confirmation of enough other information that they have received from other sources (possibly some guilty party) that tends to put you in a bad light, and that  may result in you being charged with a crime. [The fact that some of the key information they have been provided is false may not be able to be addressed by you or your attorney until much later in the process (like preparing for trial), because the investigators may choose not to provide you with accurate details regarding this information when "interviewing" you].  Investigators are allowed, and even trained to use falsehoods to trick suspects into incriminating themselves.  If they  suspect you, they need not advise you of this.  They may tell you that others have said things that they have not, in fact, said.  The truth should be your friend. Even small lies will almost surely come back to haunt you.  But the phrase, "everything you say, can and will be used against you"  is often a more profound reality than you might imagine.  Even if you are completely innocent and tell only the truth, your statements (combined with false statements of others) may be used to assist those who are building a case against you based on their reliance on false information from other sources. The law does not allow an accused person's exercise of  their right to remain silent to be used against them at trial.

If you are unable to make bond, keep telephone calls from the jail to a minimum, and understand that calls from jails are recorded and available to local prosecutors, who can, at the very least, gain insights into your mindset, if not evidence that they can somehow use against you  (that they may not provide to you and your attorney in discovery  until months later). If you value your privacy and want to protect your interests, you need to speak with your attorney in private and keep phone calls from the jail short and never discuss your case on those calls, nor with anyone but your attorney.

Our general answer:  Yes, you probably should... and, almost surely not.  But whatever you do, make sure you do not miss your court date.

As to Motor Vehicle Offenses.                     

The short answer - Chances are that for most  charges you can do much better than simply going to court and pleading guilty as charged, but just showing up at court as summoned  (not missing your court date) is very important.  For many charges an attorney can handle your case without you ever going to court.

Motor vehicle offenses range from quite minor citations to  serious offenses, like DWIs, that can result in  substantial active jail time loss of driving privileges and substantial costs.    Even with some of the lesser charges,  if you simply plead guilty without considering your driving record,  such a plea might result in insurance points that may increase your insurance costs, and license points that could lead to a revocation.  The status of your drivers  license ( your driving record) is something that should always be considered.  There are often  pleas to lesser offenses (rather than a "straight up" guilty plea) that the Assistant District Attorney will  agree to, that would better serve your interests. 

The broad range of  motor vehicle related  charges for which you might find your name on a District Court Criminal calendar,  have one thing  in common , and that is:  that your failure to appear at court on the appointed date and time  may  ultimately result  in turning even  a simple charge that might have been dealt with at  minimal expense  and with little or no effect on your driving record on that date, into a bigger problem, requiring more worry, time and expense for you.   A  Failure to Appear, if not dealt with promptly, can result in a drivers license revocation, that could result in you being charged with  Driving While Revoked if you are pulled over while the revocation is in effect.   This, of course, results in you having a new court date.  And the case for which you failed to appear is no longer on the court calendar but still needs to be dealt with.    At this point the person often ends up hiring an attorney to clean up the mess.   This is actually not at all uncommon.   The moral of this story might be:  just hire an experienced attorney  and let them handle these matters for you from the beginning.  

Other Misdemeanors 

• You should consider that even the least serious misdemeanor or infraction can lead to unnecessary expenses and  inconvenience for you, if not dealt with   promptly and wisely.  
•  Serious misdemeanors can result in harm to your reputation, temporary but significant loss of certain privileges, probation,  and even jail time in some cases. 
•  Some serious misdemeanors can permanently affect your life, and you may never be able to have them expunged from your record, or regain privileges lost due to those convictions.

Felonies 

•  Any felony charge should have you considering the possible loss of your liberty,  a label as a "convicted felon",  and a status with law enforcement that may subject you to greater risk of future issues just due to being a "likely suspect".  You are then at a point in your life where your personal liberty and your options in the future may soon be profoundly and permanently altered. 
• We do not advise that your liberty be voluntarily surrendered to any degree -- certainly not by a guilty plea -- without first having  your case evaluated by knowledgeable and experienced criminal defense attorney.  
• The prosecutor who offers you a plea has no duty to educate you on the future consequences of your decision to take that plea.  In fact it may be impossible to know all of the ways that taking that particular plea may affect your future.   One main job of the  defense attorney is to look for ways to win  your case, or to  negotiate a plea that will have least  bad effects on your future.   

• Though criminal charges are sometimes dismissed outright, this does not happen in the vast majority of cases, especially serious ones -- even in  cases where the defendant, in fact, did not commit the offenses as charged.  If it is possible and  feasible for the defense at some point to present  the state with enough exculpatory  evidence to persuade them of the your very probable innocence, it may be that they will be persuaded, and dismiss the charges.                        

• One kind of plea that  is used mainly in our district courts, (often in  cases in which the offense is relatively minor or where the facts are not so aggravated,  or it might be a first offense), is called a "PJC" (prayer for judgment continued).  Sometimes  pleading guilty with an agreement that you will receive a PJC, and that the case will be continued to a future date  when the judge will review the case to determine whether you have followed court orders and  been on good behavior, and if so the judge will then dismiss the charges.  This is also sometimes done in superior court for less serious felonies.   This requires the agreement  of the prosecutor.

• There is a similar  "deferred prosecution" plea in superior court,  sometimes available in less serious  felony  cases, mainly  for first-time offenders where you would  be required to be on probation successfully for a one year period, year in order for the judge to dismiss  the charges.  This would require the agreement of the prosecutor.

• We have had client's charges dismissed in a few quite serious  cases after demonstrating  that the state's case  was flawed and/or  the state eventually concluded for themselves that they did not have the evidence to win at trial; but this generally happens, if at all,  much later in the case, after much investigation and study of the evidence.  

•  Once the state has been convinced of your guilt in a felony case --after the grand jury has handed down an indictment,  it can often take both sides preparing for trial before the state sees some of  the flaws  in their case.   

             The bottom line is --they will probably not dismiss your case.

• Prosecutors can sometimes be very reasonable and even merciful in wielding the extensive power they have to pursue, modify or dismiss criminal charges, particularly with first offenders, so carefully talking  with them regarding your case can sometimes yield better results than any trial or adversarial plea negotiation might bring.  But this should be done through your  attorney.
•  More often though, in more serious cases, and especially in cases where the person charged has a prior criminal record, you might well consider the general  mission of the state prosecutors in a criminal case is to get a conviction for the most serious offense possible.  This is done by one of two means -- plea or trial.  
•  If  the state believes they run a great risk of failure to get the maximum at trial, or maybe just decide it will save time and avoid any risk, they may offer a plea to a lesser offense or a plea to the original offense  with a lesser sentence.   
•  A guilty plea is the result of negotiations between the defense and the prosecution, and could range anywhere from a "straight up" plea (guilty as charged) to a deferred prosecution or judgment continued where the charges are eventually dismissed after a period of probation. 
• Of course the sentence to be imposed for a guilty plea can also be agreed upon between the parties and so is another important part of any plea negotiation.  So in a guilty plea to an offense that allows for active time in prison, might be negotiated to a lower number of months in the sentencing range or  to be served on probation.  It is wise to have a lawyer to represent you in working through this process.