NYC Investigations Criminal Lawyers

People are sometimes notified that they have become the subject of a criminal investigation. That is not a letter or phone call that you ever want to receive. If you do get that message, you will want to have the best legal assistance that you can possibly find out there to help you out in these circumstances. You will need the best legal minds that you can find to aid you in your quest for justice and to protect your rights.

When You Are First Notified

From the moment you are notified that you are the subject of a criminal investigation you should seek out help from lawyers who know what they are doing. Put another way, you need to act quickly in order to make sure that your rights are not trampled on as you try to do the best that you can to remain calm and collected.

Getting a lawyer does a couple of things for you:

1) It Helps You Get Peace Of Mind- A lot of people feel the strong need to have someone else take over the wheel so to speak when things get sticky like this. That is a perfectly rational response to have, and it makes perfect sense that some individuals would prefer it if their attorney would take charge of matters for them rather than them having to fight through it all by themselves.

2) Slows The Investigation Process Down- Another key thing that you can expect to get from hiring a lawyer is the slowing down of the investigation. This is not to say that the attorney will obstruct in the process, it just means that investigators will have to more carefully follow all of the rules of investigation if they want to continue to pursue their investigation.

Investigation Does Not Equal Guilt

There is a stigma in our society that anyone being investigated for something is automatically guilty of whatever it is that they are being investigated for. This could not be farther from the truth. The reality is that we all retain our constitutional rights at all times. Just because you are the subject of an investigation does not mean that you have done anything wrong.

Law enforcement frequently follows up on tips and rumors that turn out to have little or no truth to them at all. It is not impossible to imagine a situation in which you find yourself in the middle of something like that and people are breathing down your neck wondering what it is exactly that you have done. Argue as you may with them, they may still not believe your claims of innocence. This is incredibly frustrating but also fairly common. Make sure you are mentally prepared for the potential of people not wanting to listen to your side of the story or not wanting to believe it.

Never Speak To Law Enforcement Without An Attorney

You are guaranteed the right to an attorney at all stages of the process. You do not have to speak to law enforcement at all without your attorney present. In fact, you should not do this. You may have the instinct to want to talk with them because you believe that you have nothing to hide. This is a notion that a lot of us share when we are accused of something. Unfortunately, it doesn’t matter what you say to law enforcement, they will twist it against you when you go to court.

An attorney will make sure that you only provide law enforcement with the information that they require. You do not have to give them anything, and speaking with them will only increase your chances of giving up something that will end up hurting your case in the future. You obviously do not want to do that, so the best thing is to simply insist on an attorney and only answer questions through that attorney.

You may be scared and nervous about what a criminal investigation is going to mean for your future. That is a reasonable way to feel about things. Just remember that an investigation is only the first step in this whole process. It is a long ball game, and there is every chance in the world that you have done nothing wrong.