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Frequently
Asked Questions
Q:
What kind of questions should I ask my prospective
attorney?
A: A
defendant should never be intimidated when interviewing
with a prospective attorney. Like most occupations,
attorneys can vary widely in their experience and skill
levels. Some questions to ask would be:
-
How much experience does the attorney have?
-
How many trials has the attorney tried?
-
How many trials has the attorney won?
-
Has the attorney handled cases which are similar in
nature to your current charge?
- Is
the attorney Board Certified?
Never forget that the
attorney ultimately works for the client. A
client should always ask good questions so that
they can educate themselves on the experience and
skill level of the attorney they are thinking about
hiring. NEVER
base such an important decision on advertising or on
literature produced by the attorney, ask questions and
listen carefully to the answers.
Q: Why
aren’t all attorneys Board Certified?
A: The
Florida Bar sets rigid requirements that an attorney
must pass before being considered for Board
Certification. For certification in Criminal Trial Law,
these requirements include:
- A
written examination given by the Florida Bar to test
a lawyer’s knowledge and skill.
-
Having been lead counsel on at least 25 criminal
trials, at least 15 of which have involved felony
charges
-
Submission of a criminal trial court memorandum of
law or brief
- A
peer review from other attorneys and judges
-
Proof of continuing legal education within the area
of criminal law
Once the Bar awards an
attorney with Board Certification, that attorney is
permitted to designate himself a specialist in the area
of criminal trial law.
Q: What
happens after I am arrested?
A:
Every person charged with a crime and taken to jail is
taken to First Appearance before a Judge. The purpose of
a First Appearance hearing is to make sure the defendant
understands what the charges are against him, and that
the charge stated against him on the police report
constitutes initial probable cause. The judge would then
consider factors relating to the defendant’s release
from custody. It is always a good idea to hire an
attorney immediately upon arrest so the attorney can
advocate for the defendant’s release at First
Appearance.
At
First Appearance the defendant will learn of their next
court date which is called Arraignment. Cases are not
normally set for a trial date immediately after
Arraignment, but rather are set for successive pre trial
court dates so that both sides can learn more about the
case and prepare it for trial, if necessary.
Florida
law allows Discovery. This means that the defendant’s
lawyer can obtain police narratives, evidence summaries,
witness statements, and many other important documents
which would not be provided to a defendant at their
First Appearance. The defendant’s lawyer can also take
depositions on all felony cases, and in some misdemeanor
cases with leave of the Court. A deposition is when a
defendant’s lawyer can ask questions of the State’s
witnesses to gain more valuable information to assist in
the defense of the case.
Once an
attorney has sufficient knowledge of the unique facts of
a case, he or she may decide to file pre-trial motions
such as; motions to suppress evidence, motions to
dismiss, and motions to compel disclosure of further
information. All of these pre trial motions are valuable
tools in challenging the validity of the State’s case.
At the
end of the criminal law process, charges are disposed of
in one of three basic ways. Charges are either
dismissed, after negotiations some type of plea is
entered and the defendant is sentenced, or a case must
go to a trial to have a jury decide the guilt or
innocence of the defendant.
Q: When
is the best time to hire an attorney after I am
arrested?
A: It
is very important to hire an attorney at the earliest
possible opportunity. For example, an attorney can often
advocate at the First Appearance hearing to try to
secure a defendant’s release from jail, or to have a
bond set as low as possible. In addition, many cases are
time sensitive. For example, once arrested for a DUI, a
defendant has only ten days before they must request an
Administrative Hearing Review of any license suspension.
In some cases, witnesses are hard to find and the
earlier an attorney is on a case, the better chance they
have of locating all the necessary witnesses for a
defense.
Q: What
is the worse possible sentence I am looking at?
A:
Under Florida law, any defendant charged with a crime
can potentially be sentenced to the statutory maximum.
This means that even if a defendant does not have a
criminal record, they can legally be sentenced to the
statutory maximum which usually involves jail or prison
time. For example, in Florida the maximum sentence for a
3rd Degree Felony is 5 years in prison. The maximum
sentence for a 2nd Degree Felony is 15 years in prison.
An experienced attorney can be extremely valuable in assessing what
a realistic sentence might be in a particular case
despite the statutory maximums.
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