Criminal Lawyers in Los Angeles County serve clients who get arrested by the police and needs to appear in one of the 40 courthouses in the area. Once a person is taken into police custody, he/she is not allowed to move around freely. Usually, an arrest warrant is also issued which contains details about the crimes committed and the person who committed the crime. The accused person is also given the opportunity to hire a criminal lawyer to question the lawfulness of the arrest and fight for his/her release in the court. However, the case should come under the criminal category in order to get help from a criminal attorney.
Criminal Lawyers in Los Angeles Assists with Determining Right Bail Option
People with minor offences are usually released immediately. But they need to appear in the court at a later date. On the other side, people who have committed serious crimes are placed in jail. In such cases, the individual can obtain a pre-trail release through bail with the help of a criminal lawyer. Bail is all about getting out of the jail and is usually done by giving a certain amount of cash or property in return for release. However, the person is obliged to appear in the court on a prefixed date. To get the bail, the lawyer will assess the financial status and severity of the crime, and determine whether the accused is capable of paying the required amount of money. The lawyer will also assist with making a decision on the best way to post the bail, whether by paying in cash or check, or by signing over ownership rights to the property.
Criminal Lawyers in Los Angeles Assists with Arraignment
This is the first stage of the court proceedings. At this stage, the person is allowed to hire a public attorney if he/she does not have one. During the procedure, the judge reads the criminal charge, and asks the person whether he wants to plead guilty or not. Any alteration to the bail amount is also done at this stage. The judge also announces the dates of the future proceedings. All defendants or the person accused of the crime has the right to hire an attorney to represent them at the court. If the person cannot afford to hire one, a government appointed attorney will help him/her with the criminal proceedings at no extra cost.
Criminal Lawyer in Los Angeles Assists with Plea Bargain and Preliminary Hearing
Most cases end with a plea bargain as the defendant can save time as well as money. In plea bargain, the criminal attorney talks to the prosecutor to reach an agreement so that the defendant receives a lesser sentence. The attorney assists with plea bargaining in three ways. Charge bargaining is the most popular type of plea bargain in which the defendant is allowed to plead guilty to a lesser offence. Sentence bargaining is not very common, and is used when the defendant want to plead guilty to the offence to get a lighter sentence. The third type of plea bargain, fact bargaining is very rare, and most courts do not allow it.
During preliminary hearing, the attorney can make arguments and prove that the convicted person is innocent. The criminal lawyers in Los Angeles will also ensure that the constitutional rights of the defendant are not violated under any circumstances.