Blog

A criminal conviction can lead to legal penalties that no one wants to face. Fortunately, if you have been accused of a crime, there are many ways that an attorney can help. The specific strategy that your lawyer will employ depends on a variety of factors, including the strength of the state’s case against you and whether there are any viable defenses. Some of the more common criminal defense strategies used include the following.

Asserting an Affirmative Defense

An affirmative defense is one where the defendant does not deny any of the allegations made by the prosecution, but rather asserts additional facts that, if true, relieves the defendant of criminal culpability. For example, if you were in a fight with another person and hit them and were facing a battery case, you may be able to argue that you were acting in self-defense and that your use of force was justified. In this scenario, you would not deny that you used force, but rather would introduce evidence that indicating that you used a reasonable amount of force in order to protect yourself from a threat.

Creating a Reasonable Doubt

In our criminal justice system, the state needs to be able to prove every element of a criminal offense beyond a reasonable doubt in order to secure a conviction. In some criminal cases, the best strategy is to create reasonable doubt about one element of the offense, making it impossible for the prosecution to make their case. For instance, if the elements of drunk driving are (1) driving a vehicle while (2) having a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of over .08, your attorney may try and create doubt as to whether the results of any chemical testing that was performed were accurate.

Mitigating the Consequences

In some cases, the best strategy to take is simply to mitigate the consequences you are facing by accepting a plea bargain. Plea bargains involve pleading guilty to a lesser offense or a reduced sentence, thereby saving the state the time and expense associated with taking your case to trial. Generally, plea bargaining is used when the state has a strong case and the defendant simply want to move on with as little legal consequence as possible.

Call 856-795-9688 today for a free consultation.

If you have been accused of a crime in New Jersey, you should contact an attorney as soon as possible. Even relatively minor offenses can have serious consequences, and trying to defend yourself against a professional prosecutor is a recipe for disaster. To schedule a free consultation with experienced New Jersey criminal defense lawyer Robert DePersia, II, call our office today at 856-795-9688 or send un an email through our online contact form.