Understanding Plea Deals: Weighing Legal Guidance Importance
Do you need a lawyer if the prosecution is offering just standard terms for a plea? Hi, my name is Carl Birkhead. I’m a Tulsa criminal attorney with Wirth Law Office in Tulsa, Oklahoma. I’ve been practicing criminal law for almost eight years now, and I want to help you make the law easier to understand by discussing what an attorney can do to assist you with plea negotiations.
The answer to the question is usually yes, but it also depends on what you want to get out of this. If you’re wanting just to get the case over with as quickly and easily as possible, and you’re not really fussed about the particulars, taking the prosecution’s first offer, their standard offer, whatever they say the going rate is, isn’t necessarily a terrible idea.
Evaluating the Prosecution’s Standard Offer
I mean, if it’s something where you committed the crime, you know you committed the crime, you’re just looking for probation, pay a fine, and get out, cool, great, take that and go with God. But sometimes there’s a reason why the prosecution is just giving you their standard rate and telling you to move on.
Sometimes they want you to take it and plead it out because they don’t want you to look at the case too closely. Every single time you come up in a situation where you’re facing criminal charges, you have rights, you have defenses that can be raised. And taking the plea just right out of the gate without consulting with an attorney is going to deprive you of those defenses and of those rights.
Weighing Your Legal Rights and Options
You’re going to be losing your right to jury trial, you’re going to be losing the right to confront your witness, you’re going to be losing a lot of the things that the Constitution and state laws have put in place to protect you, just in exchange for a quick and easy plea. If that’s what you want, great. And a lot of times, that’s not a bad option.
But if you want to sit down, take a look at your case, figure out what your strengths are and your weaknesses are, that is always a good idea. Because even if the state’s offer is good, maybe we can get it to be better. Even if it seems like a great idea to just do a quick and dirty plea and move on, maybe we can take a little bit longer, but get less restrictions on the terms of your probation, or get fewer classes that you’re having to take, or maybe even limit the amount of time that you’re supposed to be on probation.
The Advantages of Experienced Legal Representation
There are a lot of factors that play into this. If you don’t have an attorney who knows how to play this game, you’re going to miss these moves. If you’re in this situation, give me a call. I would love to be able to sit down, talk with you, and see what we can do to get you through this together.
Start with a Low-Cost Initial Strategy Session
My name is Carl Birkhead. I’m a Tulsa felony attorney with Wirth Law Office, and I want to help you make law easy. Call me at 918-879-1681 to schedule a low-cost initial strategy session today and explore the best possible options for your case.
