Every year in California, countless arrests are made in connection with a wide variety of crimes. This can often mean that the legal system is under strain while officers are working around the clock to keep the peace. As a result, mistakes can be made, and you might find yourself facing charges for a crime you didn’t commit. Furthermore, even if you have been involved in criminal activity, you could be implicated in more serious offenses or faced with an unfairly long sentence.
As such, a good defense is critical. Regardless of whether or not you are innocent, the court needs to find you guilty beyond any reasonable doubt for you to be convicted. This means that if you want a not guilty verdict, it is important to preserve that doubt. There are many ways to do this, and your strategy will depend heavily upon the details of your case.
In other cases, you may want to consider a plea deal. This can sometimes be beneficial when a guilty verdict seems inevitable. A plea deal can not only reduce the length of the criminal process but may also enable you to secure a lighter sentence or even have some of the charges against you dropped.
If you are facing criminal charges for this or any other form of crime, our page on defense strategies may have some of the information you need. It can be daunting awaiting a criminal trial, but you do not have to face it alone. An attorney could prove to be invaluable during the preparatory period, as well as the trial itself. He or she can evaluate the specifics of your case and may be able to help you build your defense and ensure that your side of the story is heard by the courts.