Reasons for Hiring a Criminal Defense Attorney in Mount Vernon WA
The legal system is designed in a way that inhibits your ability to represent yourself in a criminal trial in a competent manner. Unlike you, criminal defense lawyers are trained to employ certain arguments and factors that may mitigate, or even negate any potential sentence that you are facing. Therefore, if you have been arrested and charged with a crime attracting serious penalties or time in prison, you will want to hire an experienced Criminal Defense Attorney in Mount Vernon WA to represent you. Here are some of the benefits that you may derive from hiring a criminal defense lawyer.
Assistance with plea bargaining
An attorney will be in a position to negotiate deals with the prosecutor owing to their familiarity with the judicial process. Plea bargaining can reduce your potential sentence, or even eliminate your charges altogether. Often, prosecutors will be unwilling to negotiate with unrepresented defendants, making hiring a lawyer a necessity.
Help with getting alternative sentencing programs
The conventional justice system is more punitive than restorative, thus incarcerations are often given priority to rehabilitation. If you are found guilty, you are likely to end up in prison. This can be prevented by hiring a lawyer who is capable of working around your sentence preventing you from being sent behind bars. For instance, if you have a drug problem, your lawyer may suggest that you be sent to a drug rehabilitation facility as opposed to jail.
Enhanced objectivity
Criminal trials are often accompanied with emotions, such as embarrassment, depression, fear and low self-esteem, which may adversely affect your ability to defend yourself. On the other hand, a criminal defense lawyer will have undergone the requisite training that allows them to remain objective and emotionally detached throughout the proceedings. This objectivity is necessary especially during the plea bargaining stage, as well as during cross examination of the witnesses.
The legal system is full of complex rules and regulations that may prove impossible to understand to a layman. For instance, you may never be able to prove the illegality of a police search unless you understand the numerous nuances and intricacies that surround the 4th amendment of the US constitution. If you are looking for a Criminal Defense Attorney in Mount Vernon WA, Howson Law Office.
