Overview

Any person who is charged with a crime or questioned by the police concerning a criminal offense, whether a misdemeanor or a felony, has a right against self-incrimination provided by the Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. This still means that the accused is entitled to be informed as to his or her Miranda rights, such as to remain silent, and to be represented by counsel of their own choosing, and if they are not so informed, no information given by them can be used against them in a court of law. Although Miranda is currently under attack in the U.S. Supreme Court, the rights of the accused will still be protected by the Constitution notwithstanding whether Miranda should stand or fall. Another important right given to the accused in a criminal case is the right to be appointed a lawyer if he or she cannot afford a lawyer. As is increasingly evident from the number of overturned criminal convictions due to the advent of DNA typing, innocent people are charged with crimes and prosecuted. Of course, it is hard to believe this fact until you find yourself wrongly accused. The unhappy fact is that innocence is not enough, it is extremely important that a competent criminal defense lawyer be involved in any case at the earliest possible opportunity.

Basics