The role of a criminal defense lawyer in Cook County, IL is to ensure the rights of the client are protected at all times. When possible, the lawyer will seek to create a defense intended to obtain a complete dismissal of the charges. Depending on what those charges happen to be and the circumstances surrounding the allegations, the lawyer will employ different approaches to the defense. Here are some of the possible ways the lawyer will proceed.
The Matter of Self-Defense
One approach the criminal defense lawyer in Cook County, IL may take is pleading self defense. This approach involves providing the court with evidence that the client took certain actions because of a direct threat to their well-being. After presenting the evidence, the defense lawyer will point out how choosing not to take those actions would have led to serious injury or possibly the client’s death.
Coercion
Another strategy is to suggest coercion. With this type of defense, the goal of the lawyer is to prove that the client was forced into committing the crime by a third party. For example, the crime was committed because a third party threatened to do bodily harm to a spouse or a child. That led the client into believing a failure to comply with the demand would result in harm to loved ones.
An Affirmative Defense
This approach is different from other approaches in that it does confirm at least a portion of the evidence presented by the prosecution. An affirmative defense also refutes and defuses other portions of the prosecution’s allegations. For example, a witness presented by the defense testifies that the accused party could not have been present at the time someone committed the murder under investigation. The same witness confirms the defendant was with the victim earlier but had parted ways well before the crime occurred. This type of defense recognizes the facts presented while refuting the conclusion drawn from those facts.
Facing criminal charges of any kind requires securing a lawyer who knows how to mount a relevant defense. The team at Giannola Legal LLC will explore every option and determine how to go about structuring a defense that ensures the client’s rights are protected throughout the trial.
