Under the “Three Strikes” law in California, you can be severely penalized for being convicted of three or more felonies. It is urgent that if you are in such a situation that you hire a criminal defense lawyer, and a good one at that! Such a lawyer can help you reclaim your honor and stave off penalties.
The three strike law will quickly put anyone convicted of three felonies behind bars for a life term. A life term seems unreasonable for someone who has not been convicted of violent crimes, and for those that are innocent, it is just absurd. A criminal defense attorney will look into your case and try to prove your point, and hopefully if things go well you can avoid serving a lifetime in jail.
Do your research before even contacting a criminal defense attorney. There are plenty out there with no experience, or with only enough experience to account for several cases. If you are dealing with the act of going to jail for a life sentence, you should only call attorneys that have had an impressive list of cases that have been won.
Ask to see a list of prior cases that involved the California three strike rule. If the attorney has consistently made impressive strides to release their clients from the law, you can probably trust the attorney with your case. If the attorney doesn’t have experience in this law specifically, try to get a referral or go back to researching other attorneys.
An attorney will sometimes try to manipulate his or her way into getting you to agree to using them in the court room. They may try to make it appear that they are the only option or try to scare you into making an impulse decision. The three strikes law is indeed a scary law to face, but you should still look at several attorneys regardless. That way you will know which one is best for you, and which ones are just out to make money.
Even if you don’t think you have a chance to overturn the three strike rule, put money towards an attorney regardless. There have been instances where felonies that were not considered violent have been allowed to be reduced, and instead of serving a life term the client will serve a lesser term in jail or pay fines. It’s a nice trade-off that you won’t regret once you get out of jail.
In Conclusion
The money required for a good attorney is immense. But don’t be scared away by having to put yourself into debt for a good attorney. After all, it’s better to be in debt and work your way out rather than be in jail and not having possibility of parole.
Learn more about Ventura Criminal Defense Lawyer and Los Angeles Criminal Defense Attorney.