What are common defenses against a crime?
If you have been accused of or arrested for committing a crime, you have a right to a speedy trial. In your trial, you have the right to an attorney who will present some form of defense against the criminal charges. Whether the attorney is one you hire or one appointed to represent you by the court, it is the job of the criminal defense attorney to establish a sound defense against the criminal charges in an attempt to have the charges dropped or bring about a not guilty verdict from the court. Depending on the type of crime and the specific circumstances, there are commonly used defenses that your attorney may raise against the criminal charges. Here are descriptions of some of the commonly used defenses against criminal charges. Failure of the prosecution to prove their case. In a criminal case, a defendant is considered to be innocent until proven guilty. This means that the prosecution must present enough evidence to the court to establish that the defendant committed the crime beyond a reasonable doubt. Once the prosecution has finished presenting their evidence, the defense can argue that the prosecution failed to prove their case beyond a reasonable doubt. If the court agrees, the defendant is allowed to go free. Presenting an alibi for the defendant. An alibi is defined as proving that the defendant was somewhere else when a crime was committed. Obviously, if the defendant was not at the scene of the crime, the defendant could not be responsible for having committed the crime. An alibi is commonly established by testimony from witnesses who can place the defendant in a location other than the crime scene at the time the crime was committed. An alibi might also be established by receipts, video footage, or other physical evidence that demonstrated the defendant was in a different location at the time of the crime. The defendant acted in self defense. If a person is being attacked or otherwise physically threatened, the person has the right to use reasonable measures to defend themselves. In the case of a violent crime, if the defense attorney can prove that the defendant was acting in self defense, then there was no crime committed. Self defense can be used even if the defend only believed they were about to be harmed. The defendant was not in his right mind. This is known as the insanity defense. For a person to be found guilty of a crime and punished for those actions, the person must have a basic understanding of right from wrong and that the acts he was committing were in fact a crime. If a person is found to not be in his right mind, such as because of a mental illness, the person may not be guilty of having committed the crime. However, this may mean that the person needs to be incarcerated for treatment of the mental illness. The defendant was entrapped by law enforcement. If the defendant committed a crime because it was set up by a member of law enforcement, the defendant may not be held accountable for the crime. The success in using this defense varies widely depending on the situation. You can get in touch with a criminal defense attorney by completing the short form found at http://www.criminaldefensehome.com/eval_bar.php, and a criminal defense attorney will contact you. This initial consultation with a criminal defense attorney is free of charge, completely confidential, and does not obligate you to anything further. But after discussing your case with an attorney, if you would like their help in providing your defense, you are free to hire the attorney. Therefore, you should take this opportunity to discuss your case with an attorney so that you can make a well-informed decision.
I have been charged with a crime. How can I get help?
