Hire a Lawyer Now, Before Your Situation Gets Worse
It happened again today- a mother called me to hire me to represent her son, who is facing assault charges, months after the crime occurred and much damage has been done to his case.
When I asked her when the preliminary hearing was scheduled, she told me that her son had represented himself at the preliminary hearing and waived it. When I asked her whether her son had received the evidence from the District Attorney's Office, she said he had not asked for it as he was just trying to "deal with the situation on his own." Now, with the case put on the trial list, he panicked and confessed to his mother that he had been arrested and charged months ago and asked for her help.
Now, I am certainly willing to represent him, and there is still much I can do for him. However, critical deadlines have been missed and significant opportunities to learn more about the case have been lost. The assistant district attorney on the case is much less willing to talk about a favorable offer now then she was before preparing the case for six months.
If you are someone who has just been arrested, or told there is warrant out for your arrest, or you just think that you may be charged with a crime, run, do not walk, to your nearest criminal defense attorney. I am not just writing this in my own self-interest, but in your interest. Invariably, the earlier someone comes to me, the better the results I can get for them. it is easier to talk to a police officer deciding whether or not to charge someone, then it is to a prosecutor who has spent valuable resources on an expert witness who has completed his report.
Be sure to talk to any attorney you are considering hiring before you hire them. Do not hire someone you with whom you are not comfortable, or in whom you do not have confidence that they will do an excellent job for you.
But hire someone. You cannot deal with the situation "on your own." it is not going to simply "go away." Your family will still love you when you tell them the truth. If you ignore it, it will just get worse.
