Is It Necessary To Hire An Attorney For A Misdemeanor?
Misdemeanors are regarded as lesser crimes. These are the offenses that pale in comparison to felonies and their corresponding penalties are considerably lighter. Even so, you must always have an attorney by your side if you are facing misdemeanor charges.
Your Attorney Can Help You Avoid Potential Jail Time
Typically, an individual convicted of a misdemeanor may be sentenced to something like community service or probation. However, someone convicted of a misdemeanor still has a chance of ending up in jail.
By working with PA criminal lawyers, you can combat those charges or at least have them reduced. Because your attorney was there to vouch for your character, they can convince the court that you don’t belong in jail.
Your Attorney Can Gather Evidence to Prove Your Innocence
Some examples of misdemeanor offenses include drug possession, shoplifting, and trespassing. When it comes to those cases and other offenses that are regarded as misdemeanors, the availability of evidence is often a deciding factor in the verdict.
If your attorney can produce video evidence that the drugs or stolen goods were planted in your car or that you were invited by the property owner prior to the incident, the charges against you will look extremely flimsy. Aside from video evidence, your attorney can also work on gathering witness statements or public records that will help demonstrate your innocence.
After the prosecution sees the overwhelming amount of evidence that your attorney has gathered, they may not even bother with taking the case to court.
Your Attorney Can Negotiate for Lesser Penalties
If you committed the offense you are being charged with and recognize it as a serious lapse of judgment on your part, your attorney will advocate for you and seek a plea deal.
In the lead-up to your court date, your attorney can get in touch with the prosecution and ask them for a potential plea deal that can guarantee you a lesser sentence. Instead of spending a year in jail, your attorney may be able to get you community service and probation in exchange for your admission of guilt.
Your Attorney Can Help Keep Your Criminal Record Clean
Working closely with a criminal defense attorney is also highly recommended if you want to keep your criminal record clean. You could struggle to land a job because of the permanent mark left on your criminal record by your misdemeanor conviction.
To avoid those potential consequences, you can ask your attorney to negotiate your offense down to an infraction. Infractions don’t end up on criminal records so your future employers won’t have to know about the error you made. Your career can stay on track because your attorney did their job.
Face Your Misdemeanor Charges Properly
Don’t underestimate the impact a misdemeanor conviction can have on your personal and professional life. Our criminal defense attorney in Doylestown can help you defend your rights. Reach out to us at The Law Offices of Richard J. Fuschino Jr. and we’ll seek to secure the best possible outcome for your misdemeanor charge. That misdemeanor charge won’t define you as long as we’re on the case.