Is It Ever Advisable To Plead Guilty To A Criminal Charge?

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Going in and admitting that you are guilty and that you’ve done everything that they’re accusing you of, doesn’t get you any credit at the courthouse. It doesn’t work the same way your mother told you. When you go in and just plead guilty, they tend to stick it to you. They don’t listen to anything else that you might have to say. If you just go in and enter that plea without putting up a defense, without at least having someone telling about who you are and why this happened and have an explanation, it generally is not going to give you any credit. Your case is not going to do well.

You may have some guilt, or you may have an idea to resolve it quickly. One of the worst things is having that question mark over your head while the case is pending. The unknown can be more pressure than the actual case, but it is not the right thing to do to just plead guilty. You have to at least let them know why it’s happened, what’s going on, who you are, and why they need to have some leniency as to what you’ve done. There are usually a lot of options, but just going in and pleading to it, the court never gets into who you are and why it’s happened and you tend to get much worse results.

Do Most Criminal Cases Go To Trial Or Do They Generally Plead Out?

The majority of cases tend to settle outside of court. However, I have learned over time that the only way to get the proper result is to be a threat to win at trial. They will do nothing for us because we are nice people. They’ll do nothing for me as an attorney because I’m a nice guy, they’ll do nothing for my client because they’re a nice person. The only reason they will ever do anything for us is because we’re a threat to win at trial. The state knows who tries cases and who doesn’t try cases. I don’t like doing the paperwork at my desk, I don’t like doing client meetings. What I enjoy is trying the case. I enjoy the time in the trial. That’s my favorite thing, that’s what gets me doing this stuff and everyone knows that.

When we get to that point, we may resolve the case prior to the trial, but the state knows who is going to try that case. When they see me coming with the case, they know there is a good chance that this could be a trial, and they pay attention.

How Does A Prior Arrest Or Conviction Impact A Criminal Case?

In misdemeanor courts, they look at prior arrests and convictions. There is a thing called NCIC, which is a national criminal database that is used by the state attorney to see your prior record. It is one of the few times the states communicate with each other, it’s one of the few times that they are able to really figure out what’s pending. In misdemeanor, they’ll look at that, and they’ll know what’s going on. This is somewhat of a soft influence, meaning that it depends on who the prosecutor is, and once they see what your priors are, they’ll make an offer based on that. There are certain crimes that are specific. If you have the exact same crime prior to this, multiples can make it into a higher degree crime. For example, a DUI can become a felony after you have a certain number of convictions, a driving license suspended can become a felony and battery can become a felony, just because of multiple convictions.

If you are charged with a felony, Florida has produced what’s called the score sheet. That score sheet literally gives you a point score of whatever you are charged with, and then it gives you a point score that is specific to your prior record. They add all those points together, and they put it through this formula that the legislature came up with. That formula calculates a minimum amount of jail or prison time that they can give you if you are convicted. Your prior record can be huge influencing factor, depending on what it was, how serious it was, and what the legislature designated that particular crime to be as far as the score sheet is concerned.

What Sets Your Firm Apart In Handling Criminal Cases?

I encourage everyone to go talk with a few different attorneys. You are going to know, as soon as you talk with them, if they know what they are doing. Depending on what they are saying, if they are honest and tell you what they’re really looking at, whether or not they know what they are talking about. As soon as they are telling you or they are starting to sell you that they have a magic wand and can make this all go away, that’s a huge red flag as to what’s happening. If they actually talk to you about the trial, and what we have to do in defense, and why something would work or why something may not work and are being realistic with you, that’s the attorney you want. You don’t want somebody who is promising you this magic wand that’s just going to magically make it all go away.

For more information on Pleading Guilty To Criminal Charges, a free initial consultation is your next best step. Get the information and legal answers you are seeking by calling (239) 263-4384 today.