What makes a great Michigan criminal defense attorney? Part 1: Location and Investigation
If you want to find a great criminal lawyer for your case, look for these characteristics.
Where is the attorney located? The benefits of “home field” and “familiarity”
When you are looking to hire a criminal lawyer you should first find one that is familiar with the jurisdiction or court where your case is being heard. Most Michigan criminal lawyers practice in multiple counties. For example, because our law firm is centrally located in Macomb County, we are intimately familiar with courts located in Macomb, Oakland, Wayne, and Saint Clair Counties. You have to ask if your potential lawyer has done several cases in the particular court where your case is located. This is extremely important. Familiarity provides a criminal lawyer with the necessary information. Procedures vary from one courthouse to another. For example, the prosecutor in one county may have a different policy from that of another prosecutor. For example, Bloomfield Hills District Court handles drunk driving cases much differently than Chesterfield Township. Criminal defense attorneys must also know how the prosecutors operate. Some prosecutors are willing to negotiate cases while others do not. Some will go to trial while others prefer to settle the case. A criminal defense attorney should be familiar with the police departments and their officers. An attorney familiar with the police may be able to quickly handle the matter with the officer’s input with the prosecutor. Basically, you want an attorney who operates with a “home field” advantage.
True criminal defense attorneys, like prosecutors, law enforcement, judges, probation officers, are “frequent flyers” in the courts. Since the defense attorney has been in the courts for years, the defense attorney has established a professional relationship with the prosecutors and city attorneys. This only benefits you as a defendant.
If your attorney has been professional over the years, he or she, has established a great reputation for being ethical, thorough, competent, and reasonable. A good reputation combined with reasonableness puts the attorney in a better position to negotiate and argue on your behalf.
Some defendants get concerned when the defense attorney gets along with the prosecutor. You shouldn’t be concerned if your attorney makes small talk with the prosecutor. The reality is, the small talk and collegiality is part of being reasonable. A reasonable and approachable criminal defense attorney can help secure a dismissal or reduction of the charges, obtain a great plea offer, a favorable bond — or dozens of other matters that affect a criminal prosecution. You are probably familiar with the famous cliche: “You can catch more bees with honey than you can with vinegar?” It definitely applies to criminal cases. There is a time to fight and a time for peace. A skilled criminal defense attorney knows when it is time to choose one over the other.
Attorney qualities
The best criminal defense lawyers all have have exceptional skills in 4 areas. They are: the Investigation, Negotiation, Preparation, and Execution.
Investigation
An investigation is where an attorney’s work in the case begins. While the police report and discovery provide an initial basis as to the foundation of a criminal case, the attorney may need to follow-up with his or her own investigation into the facts. Most lawyers do not go any further than the officer’s statements in the police report. Skilled attorney’s don’t stop there. It is the probably the biggest single difference in lawyers. Some defense attorneys are willing to work harder than others. Some are more dedicated to being a true defense attorney. Attorneys who conduct their own investigation, when necessary, separate themselves from the pack of average attorneys.
When a criminal defense attorney receives a criminal case, he or she must get up to speed on the facts. The police and prosecutor have, we hope, done a complete investigation into the case. Depending on the case, the police have conducted an investigation that may have taken months or even years. A criminal defense attorney, by contrast, is getting into the game late. After meeting with the client to obtain his or her version of events, the defense attorney may have to investigate. A strong defense is based on the facts. A great criminal defense attorney asks, “Did this really happen the way the police claim?” “Are there alternative explanations as to what happened?” “What do I need to show to establish that my client is not guilty of this offense?” “Did the police miss anything?” So, a great criminal defense attorney must gather photos, locate witnesses, have independent tests done, obtain phone records, and so much more. The investigation of the facts can make or break a defense. Not many lawyers investigate. Very few go to the scene of a crime. Only a few ever go out and talk to witnesses.
The American Bar Association, Standard 4-4.1,states:
INVESTIGATION AND PREPARATION
Standard 4-4.1 Duty to Investigate and Engage Investigators
(a) Defense counsel has a duty to investigate in all cases, and to determine whether there is a sufficient factual basis for criminal charges.
(b) The duty to investigate is not terminated by factors such as the apparent force of the prosecution’s evidence, a client’s alleged admissions to others of facts suggesting guilt, a client’s expressed desire to plead guilty or that there should be no investigation, or statements to defense counsel supporting guilt.
(c) Defense counsel’s investigative efforts should commence promptly and should explore appropriate avenues that reasonably might lead to information relevant to the merits of the matter, consequences of the criminal proceedings, and potential dispositions and penalties. Although investigation will vary depending on the circumstances, it should always be shaped by what is in the client’s best interests, after consultation with the client. Defense counsel’s investigation of the merits of the criminal charges should include efforts to secure relevant information in the possession of the prosecution, law enforcement authorities, and others, as well as independent investigation. Counsel’s investigation should also include evaluation of the prosecution’s evidence (including possible re-testing or re-evaluation of physical, forensic, and expert evidence) and consideration of inconsistencies, potential avenues of impeachment of prosecution witnesses, and other possible suspects and alternative theories that the evidence may raise.
Example of how our investigation won a “not guilty” verdict for our client
My client charged with several counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct as alleged by his niece. This is a maximum with a minimum sentence of at least 10 years mandatory and consecutive for each charge. In total, he was looking at 50 years in prison, minimum.
The complainant alleged that her uncle assaulted her in her grandmother’s home where he lived after a divorce. At trial, the detective in charge of the case testified that he took the complainant’s statement and interviewed her. He had the complainant interviewed by Care House. He also had the complainant write a statement.
This was a high level case with a lot at stake for our client. Effectively, he would have received a death sentence if he went to prison for 50 years. This would have been tragic since he had maintained his innocence since day one. Our independent investigation support the defense of complete innocence.
We investigated the layout of the home where the events allegedly occurred. The house was 900 square feet. This did not allow for much privacy. The bedroom where the events allegedly occurred was directly next door to our client’s daughter’s bedroom. The walls were thin by ordinary standards. The grandparent’s stayed up late, that is, until 3 or 4 a.m every night. The television was located in such a way that when the grandparents were watching, they had a straight line of sight down the hallway where the bedrooms were located. The rooms did not have doors on them. The bathroom was located right next to the bedroom where the incidents allegedly occurred. We had photos and a layout of the home.
When I cross-examined the detective, I was armed with the evidence that I had obtained during my investigation. The following exchange occurred at trial:
Question: Officer did you go to the home to look at the alleged scene of the crime?
Response: No.
Question: Did you investigate the home to see the rooms did not have doors on them?
Response: No.
Question: In this photo isn’t it true that the grandparents would have a direct line of sight down the hall and could view see if their son went into the granddaughter’s bedroom?
Response: Yes.
Question: But you didn’t investigate that fact, correct?
Response: I did not.
Question: Did you investigate the walls to see how thin they were and if a person could hear movement from another room?
Response: I did not.
Question: Did you ever look at a layout of the home?
Response: No.
Question: Did you investigate and discover that my client’s daughter’s room was next door to the complaint’s bedroom?
Response: No.
Question: Did you investigate the living room to see how far the grandparent’s were from the bedroom?
Response: No.
Question: So, you never measured that it was only 20 feet?
Response: No.
Question: What exactly did you detect, detective?
Response: Silence
The jury found my client not guilty of all 5 counts. In fact, during the cross-examination of the detective and alleged victim, the jurors were shaking their heads in disbelief of the stories and claims. Short story was the alleged victim falsely accused her uncle of these crimes because she wanted to deflect from bad behavior.
Had we not done our own investigation we would not have had a solid defense to the case.
The moral of the story is that you must find an attorney that is willing to do the work. You must find a criminal defense attorney that will investigate possible defenses of the case. It is you against the great resources of the police and prosecutors. Your attorney must be ready to take on that challenged and be armed with evidence for that fight.