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It's very relevent to determine the possible consequences of possible inferior council.
I agree. I sat on a jury once on a murder trial, and I'm pretty sure one of those kids would not have gone to prison--or at least would have done much less time/been advised to plea to a lesser charge if his mother had been able to afford an attorney. His public defender just shoved him through the process.
The kid was 14 and present at a murder, but in another car parked some distance away from where the murder was actually taking place. Yet he was advised by his public defender to plead guilty to murder, and he went to juvenile prison for 15 years.
But you do not need to know what the charge is to determine the consequences of an inferior lawyer. The consequence would be a guilty verdict.
But there is a huge difference between being found guilty of, say, a disorderly persons offense, and a violent felony. Even though you can be found guilty of both, the implications of being found guilty of the former are obviously vastly different from the latter.
While it may not be directly relevant to know the exact offense, the possible consequences of being convicted are highly relevant. If it were my kid, if there was any chance he could do jail time or have anything significant on his record that could cause issue with future employment, college admission, whatever, I'd be hiring the best lawyer I could afford.
But there is a huge difference between being found guilty of, say, a disorderly persons offense, and a violent felony.
That's simple common sense.
The fact is no one needs the charge to determine the down side of having a PD. The simple fact is that you are getting a lawyer that has a larger workload and in many cases less experienced. It makes zero difference if the charge is know to the world. I think they already know the more serious the charge, the more lengthy the possible sentence.
In fact, the OP isn't even sure they qualify for a PD. So the discussion is getting ahead of itself.
The fact is no one needs the charge to determine the down side of having a PD. The simple fact is that you are getting a lawyer that has a larger workload and in many cases less experienced. It makes zero difference if the charge is know to the world. I think they already know the more serious the charge, the more lengthy the possible sentence.
In fact, the OP isn't even sure they qualify for a PD. So the discussion is getting ahead of itself.
I just used that example to illustrate my point in simple terms--to put it back in context (since you chose to respond to only the first sentence of my explanation):
The "downside" of having a PD varies hugely depending on the charges. The downside of having a PD for a minor offense might be paying a fine and wasting your morning in court. The downside of having a PD for a major offense could be serious jail time. It's common sense that the risk--the downside--of gambling on a PD is not the same at all in those 2 scenarios.
As I explained above, I don't care what the charges are. My advice (as a lawyer, who has several prosecutors, PDs and private defense attorneys in the family, including my husband) was merely that you can't consider the question in a vacuum, irrespective of the charges.
I don't think anyone is arguing that it's generally better to have someone of your own choosing, who has more time to devote to your case, etc. However, the value of such an advantage varies dramatically depending on the possible consequences of having less-than-ideal representation.
The fact is no one needs the charge to determine the down side of having a PD. The simple fact is that you are getting a lawyer that has a larger workload and in many cases less experienced. It makes zero difference if the charge is know to the world. I think they already know the more serious the charge, the more lengthy the possible sentence.
In fact, the OP isn't even sure they qualify for a PD. So the discussion is getting ahead of itself.
The OP has also rambled constantly about the trouble her family has been in. Hashtag blog, know what I'm saying?
But you do not need to know what the charge is to determine the consequences of an inferior lawyer. The consequence would be a guilty verdict.
The consequence of a guilty verdict for a dui is different than the consequences for grand larceny. This is just common sense
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