About Criminal Defense and Lawyers in Richmond

Those that have been accused of a crime have the right to defend themselves in court, whether personally or through a lawyer (such as a Richmond criminal defense attorney). This process is called criminal defense and is most frequently seen in reality or fictional TV shows, having made an impression on the world at large.

We’ve put together an article for you so that you have a better understanding of what criminal defense consists of and what exactly it entails. While it is under no circumstance expansive, as the field of knowledge associated with legal matters is extremely broad, vast, and too difficult to address within a single article, we hope it will offer you a solid foundation for further, personal research.

What Is Criminal Defense and What Does It Mean?

Criminal defense is a term that either refers to a set of specific laws whose main intent is to lend protection to those who are accused of committing a crime, as well as the attorney-led argumentation process that is attempting to challenge the evidence gathered by the prosecution in hopes of absolving the defender.

This type of legal protection has been established in order to offer a degree of support to the accused, as without it, they would be overwhelmed and under the whim of the responsible government entity — in most cases referred to as “the state.”

Representing the state is a prosecutor whose job is to reach a verdict for the most relevant and punishing charges under state law. Conversely, the accused, referred to as “the defender,” is given the opportunity to defend themselves, arguing for reduced charges or none at all.

The Constitution of the United States gives you the right to hire an attorney that is going to represent your case in criminal court. This type of attorney is called a criminal defense attorney, being specialized in representing their clients and reaching a satisfactory conclusion for them.

Since the government has many resources at its disposal and almost always reaches favorable verdicts for itself if the accused does not have an attorney, the success of the defender is almost solely reliant on the skill and level of expertise their criminal defense attorney exhibits.

Thankfully, the laws in place also offer some degree of leniency and help to the defender as well. Any criminal prosecution must be based upon gathered evidence that proves the guiltiness of the defendant. This can be anything from a random physical item to a verbal statement or confession.

Experienced criminal defense attorneys, for example, know that they can use the Fourth Amendment in order to prohibit law enforcement from using evidence obtained through unlawful measures. This can even lead to the evidence being forbidden from being used in court and against the defendant regardless of its nature.

3 Most Common Criminal Charge Defenses

The scope and purpose of criminal defense for the defender and their attorney is to argue against the validity of the evidence that has been gathered by the prosecution through any means possible. We have presented a small list of the most common defenses that come up in criminal law below.

Innocence

This defense argues for the innocence of the accused. “I didn’t do it,” is a very common phrase for good reasons. If their argument is that they are simply not responsible for the crime that was committed, then it can very well serve as the foundation for a defense case.

The attorney will start working on building the defense of the accused, whether through finding witnesses to testify or evidence that directly proves the defender could not have been responsible for the crime. An alibi could be extremely important, while an alibi witness would be even more so.

The job of the prosecution, on the other hand, is to do its best in trying to prove that the defender is guilty beyond any reasonable doubt.

Self-Defense

If the defendant agrees to their guilt and confesses but then argues that they did not have a choice as they committed the crime in order to defend or protect either themselves or other people, then the claim will be that of self-defense.

These defenses come up frequently in situations such as home invasions where the robbers bring guns into the equation, prompting the defender to fight back with the firepower to ensure their continued safety. If death ensues from such a gunfight, then the defender might be charged for it, which is when the self-defense claim can be brought up.

The prosecution will mainly try and prove that the drastic measures taken by the accused were unnecessary to the situation at hand. The defense, on the other hand, must argue over the extreme risks and stress the accused was subjected to during the event and push for validating their actions.

Constitutional Violations

The accused is entitled to a large list of protections under the Constitution of the United States that is aimed at protecting them against unfair treatment on part of the government. This is regardless of whether they actually committed the crime they are being accused of.

If the prosecution (including law enforcement) infringed upon the defender’s constitutional rights, then that is grounds for the complete dismissal of the case. This defense is very common and is the reason why many cases end with only a plea bargain, despite the prosecution intending to push for more.

Here are the three most common constitutional violations:

● Failure to read the accused their Miranda warning.

● Seizing or acquiring evidence unlawfully.

● Acting on a warrant after having failed to obtain one.

Contacting an Attorney

Those accused of a crime can search up for a good attorney on the internet, through word of mouth, or through recommendations. We suggest being completely and utterly sure of their skill and experience, as even though hiring such an attorney might be costly, it can very much mean the difference between a lost case and a successful one.