Thoughts of a Criminal Defense Attorney

Posted by David J. Shestokas Jun 30, 2009

Many times I am asked if it is difficult to defend individuals accused of a crime. The answer has several elements.

Defending the Accused is Defending Us All

In some respects, defending the accused is not really about the individual defendant. Criminal defense work is frequently about making sure the system works properly to achieve justice and that the government follows the rules if it attempts to take some one's life, liberty or property as punishment for committing a crime. Those who work in the defense side of the criminal justice system are not thought of being members of law enforcement, but in reality that is the work of public defenders and private defense attorneys.

While using the term law enforcement for the defense bar may sound heretical, their job is to ensure police, prosecutors, crime scene investigators, and the other members of the community traditionally referred to as law enforcement themselves follow the rules.

There are rules are in place to protect citizens from the government. Many of these are found in the Bill of Rights as constitutional protections. Protecting citizens accused of crimes was so important to the Founding Fathers, it is addressed in the 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th and 8th Amendments. If there was not a defense community in place to assert these protections, the protections would be meaningless.

As an example, if there were not controls on police searches without a warrant, then they could enter not only the homes of persons suspected of criminal activity, they could go in looking around anybody's home, just if they felt like it. While a short example, the same holds true of all constitutional and statutory protections.

When a criminal defense attorney files a motion to suppress evidence because it was seized contrary to the 4th Amendment, the effect is immediate and direct on the defendant whose case is involved. However, the result ripples through society and is one factor in protecting us all from government intrusions.

Hardest Job is Defending the Truly Innocent

While a defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty, there must be some evidence of the crime for someone to be arrested and prosecuted. If there was no evidence there would have been no arrest. None the less, innocent people do get charged with crimes. It is in those instances that the job of defending the accused is at its most difficult.

In defending a demonstrably guilty party, the goals are often to minimize the penalties through a variety of means, including presenting mitigating circumstances. When an innocent party is prosecuted, the goal must be no less than a not guilty despite the evidince that lead to the arrest. It is at those times that a defense attorney has the most pressure. The job of defending the truly wrongully accused often takes a physical and emotional toll upon the attorney. The lawyer wjose actually innocent client is found guilty will second quess himself forever.