Lessening The Impact Of Criminal Charges
by Joan Bradley
No matter how you found yourself facing criminal charges, your goal right now is to minimize the impact that those charges will have on your life. How do you do that? Here, you'll find a few tips that can help you through this difficult time.
Hire a Criminal Defense Attorney
The biggest mistake that you can make when facing criminal charges is to try to take on the courts without the help of an experienced criminal attorney. You see, there are so many laws and loopholes that the average citizen knows nothing about—the attorney will. If there is a way to have evidence excluded, the attorney will know how to go about it. If there's a way to get the charges reduced, the attorney will know how to file the appropriate paperwork. Don't make the mistake of just showing up and pleading to the charges that you are facing—you'll end up with more penalties than you would if you had someone that actually knows the system working with you.
Consider Drug and Alcohol Treatment
If you were under the influence of drugs or alcohol at the time of the crime, do yourself a favor and look into drug and alcohol treatment—before you go to court. If you go to court and can show that you've completed or are in the process of completing a treatment program, the judge will have more leniency than he would if you were to continue living your life as if nothing has changed. You need to show the judge that you've learned an important lesson and are working to improve your life.
Rally the Family
You will need a support system to get through this time. Having a strong support system, like your family, sitting with you at each hearing will show the judge that you do have people in your life that care and are willing to dedicate their time to making sure that you stay on the straight and narrow.
Depending on the charges, you may need your family to help take care of things if you are sentenced to jail. Now's the time to show the family that you're working to get your life straight and that you appreciate them for standing by you during the worst of times.
You can get through this. Talk with a criminal defense attorney as soon as possible to begin coming up with a plan to reduce the sentencing for the crimes committed.
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About Me
You walk into your favorite grocery store and right away, you slip and fall only to sprain your ankle. You can't perform your job because it requires standing on your feet all day, which means that you can't make any money to support your family while your ankle heals. There was no warning that the floors were wet after being cleaned in the store – so what do you do? It's probably a good idea to think about filing a personal injury lawsuit. Of course, anyone with experience with a personal injury case will tell you just how important it is to work with an attorney throughout the process. I'd like to share insight I've learned through three personal injury cases that I myself have had to go through in the past. I think the information on this website can help people like you, who need some personal injury guidance.