You may not know what to do if the police contact you while you are being investigated for a crime. Law enforcement officers may contact you if you are a suspect in a case in order to ask you questions prior to an arrest and prior to giving the information to a prosecutor to pursue charges. It is critical to hire an experienced St. Petersburg criminal defense lawyer to protect your rights. You should not assume that there is a clear case against you, even if you have been arrested. Whether you are charged with a sex crime, a gun crime, a drug crime, or any other offense, you should retain legal counsel. At Hanlon Law, we understand that our clients' futures are at stake when they are investigated for or accused of a crime, and we work hard to provide a vigorous defense.
Protecting Your Rights Against the ProsecutionA Florida or federal prosecutor is tasked with proving any charge beyond a reasonable doubt. Although this is a tough burden, you can never be complacent about being accused of a crime. Even if you are not convicted, you can face damage to your reputation. If you are convicted, you may be put in prison for years, and you may not be able to pick up your life where you left off when you get out. You may face lasting harm to your ability to live where you want, pursue the type of educational degree that you choose, and work in your preferred career. You may also be suspected whenever a crime similar to yours occurs in your area.
Determining the right way to fight a charge depends on the circumstances and the elements of the specific crime. For example, if you are being charged with burglary, you may be able to show that you had permission to be in the area of the building where the actions occurred. If you are being charged with drug trafficking, you may be able to show that law enforcement entrapped you into committing a crime that you would not have committed without their inducement. This type of defense is complex and must be handled carefully by an experienced criminal defense attorney in the St. Petersburg area.
In other situations, we may be able to undermine the story being told by the prosecution. In a domestic violence case, for instance, someone may make an accusation based on an improper motive. They may want revenge for the breakdown of a relationship, or they may want to deny the defendant custody of shared children. The prosecution’s case will be much harder to prove if we can show that there are reasons to suspect the accuser of manipulating or distorting the truth.
Similarly, there are many ways for a St. Petersburg criminal defense attorney to defeat criminal charges that are related not to the elements of the specific crime but to the way in which police or prosecutors handled the case. A charge of cannabis trafficking may not survive a motion to suppress evidence of the cannabis that law enforcement officers took from you. Even if the charge is not dismissed outright, getting evidence suppressed may put the defense in a stronger position during plea bargaining, such that the charge can be reduced from trafficking to possession, which carries much less severe penalties.
Hire a Criminal Defense Lawyer in St. Petersburg or Surrounding CitiesAs soon as you realize that you may be involved in a criminal investigation or accused of a crime, you should seek legal representation, even if you are convinced that you did nothing wrong. We can examine your case from all angles and provide personalized attention. Our founder, Will Hanlon, has been providing criminal defense representation since 1994 and is familiar with the rights accorded to defendants as well as the potential ways to attack the prosecution’s case. You can contact Hanlon Law at 727.289.0222 or via our online form.