When you’ve been brought up on charges, there are times to speak and there are times to shut up. The important thing is to realize when those times are.

Shut Up! – When you’re arrested, don’t give any more information that you have to. Call a criminal defense attorney immediately and refuse to answer any police questions until you have their counsel. There’s something that cop shows get right when the accused and his or her lawyer are in questioning…the lawyer is there to stop you from answering questions that the police shouldn’t even be asking.

Speak Up! – Once you’ve hired a criminal defense attorney, start talking. We need to know everything you know so that, when the prosecutor asks a question, we’ve already prepared you for it. If you’re guilty, we don’t need to know that unless you’re going to plea bargain. But the job of a criminal defense attorney isn’t to ask “if you did it”; it’s to ask “can they prove you did it.”

Speak Up and Shut Up! – If the trial makes it to court, then it’s time to speak up…but don’t overdo it. The middle of the trial is not the time for closing argument, it’s the time to answer the questions of the prosecutor and your defense attorney. Think of it this way…you want to give enough information to appear innocent, but talk too much and eventually you’ll say something that sounds guilty or contradicts something you previously said, and the prosecutor is likely to pounce.

Having trouble with the law? We’re the criminal law firm that can help. Call us at the first sign of trouble.