I was shocked. I have always made it a practice to visit clients regularly in jail. In law school, when I was working with the Public DefenderA court appointed lawyer is a lawyer appointed by the Court (sometimes via the Public Defender Office) to represent an individual in court. Only indigent (poor) people qualify for a court appointed lawyer. A public defender is a lawyer who is employed by the Public Defender Office and who only represents indigent (poor) clients. on felony cases, I made daily trips to the jail.

Why?

First, because people in jail need to get updated on the progress of their cases. They’re sitting in jail. They have no idea what’s going on. They may hear some rumors. But the truth of the matter is that unless the lawyer visits his client, the client can’t make an informed decision about how to proceed in the case.

Second, jail is an awful place. Now, I’m not in the business of hand-holding. But I do believe that clients ought to be treated with dignity and respect. Whether they’re private clients who are paying me for my services, or court appointedA court appointed lawyer is a lawyer appointed by the Court (sometimes via the Public DefenderA court appointed lawyer is a lawyer appointed by the Court (sometimes via the Public Defender Office) to represent an individual in court. Only indigent (poor) people qualify for a court appointed lawyer. A public defender is a lawyer who is employed by the Public Defender Office and who only represents indigent (poor) clients. Office) to represent an individual in court. Only indigent (poor) people qualify for a court appointed lawyer. A public defenderA court appointed lawyer is a lawyer appointed by the Court (sometimes via the Public Defender Office) to represent an individual in court. Only indigent (poor) people qualify for a court appointed lawyer. A public defender is a lawyer who is employed by the Public Defender Office and who only represents indigent (poor) clients. is a lawyer who is employed by the Public DefenderA court appointed lawyer is a lawyer appointed by the Court (sometimes via the Public Defender Office) to represent an individual in court. Only indigent (poor) people qualify for a court appointed lawyer. A public defender is a lawyer who is employed by the Public Defender Office and who only represents indigent (poor) clients. Office and who only represents indigent (poor) clients. clients, they are people who deserve a bit of my time to make a visit, check on their condition, make sure they’re informed, and let them know about progress in their cases.

If you are being charged with a serious crime, you may spend some time in jail. It is crucially important that you find an attorney who will visit you in jail, who will work hard to get you out of jail, if that’s possible, and who will make sure that you are being treated properly in jail.

If you believe you may soon be arrested on charges that will land you in jail, give me a call at (919) 352-9411 weekdays, evenings, or weekends.

And do me a favor: do not discuss your matter on either the video terminals your family may use during their visits, or on the phone lines. Those are taped.

But the sheriff is prohibited from taping attorneys who visit their clients.

What happens if your conscience or your beliefs will not allow you to stand up in court and admit guilt to something you didn’t do, but you just can’t risk going before a juryA jury may be either a grand jury or a petit jury. A grand jury is a jury that determines whether there is probable cause to believe the defendant committed a crime. The result is an indictmentAn indictment is a finding by a grand jury that there is probable cause to believe the defendant committed a crime. An indictment is not a finding of guilt. An indictment, rather, is a method by which a prosecutor moves a case into Superior Court for resolution by plea or trial by jury. that sends the case into Superior Court, perhaps for a jury trial. A petit jury or simply a jury is the jury of 12 people who have been selected to hear and render a verdict in a case. and being convictedA conviction is a formal finding by a court - either following a trial by a judge or jury or following the entry of a pleaA plea agreementA plea agreement is usually a negotiated agreement between the defendant (through his lawyer) and the prosecution where the defendant agrees to plead guilty in exchange for some benefit, including, but not limited to, a reduced sentence or a reduction of charges. An Alford Plea is a guilty plea with all of the benefits and consequences of a guilty plea, but where the defendant does not admit personal guilt. is usually a negotiated agreement between the defendant (through his lawyer) and the prosecution where the defendant agrees to plead guilty in exchange for some benefit, including, but not limited to, a reduced sentence or a reduction of charges. An Alford Plea is a guilty plea with all of the benefits and consequences of a guilty plea, but where the defendant does not admit personal guilt. - of guilt.?

The answer is the Alford PleaA plea agreementA plea agreement is usually a negotiated agreement between the defendant (through his lawyer) and the prosecution where the defendant agrees to plead guilty in exchange for some benefit, including, but not limited to, a reduced sentence or a reduction of charges. An Alford Plea is a guilty plea with all of the benefits and consequences of a guilty plea, but where the defendant does not admit personal guilt. is usually a negotiated agreement between the defendant (through his lawyer) and the prosecution where the defendant agrees to plead guilty in exchange for some benefit, including, but not limited to, a reduced sentence or a reduction of charges. An Alford Plea is a guilty plea with all of the benefits and consequences of a guilty plea, but where the defendant does not admit personal guilt.. An Alford pleaA plea agreementA plea agreement is usually a negotiated agreement between the defendant (through his lawyer) and the prosecution where the defendant agrees to plead guilty in exchange for some benefit, including, but not limited to, a reduced sentence or a reduction of charges. An Alford Plea is a guilty plea with all of the benefits and consequences of a guilty plea, but where the defendant does not admit personal guilt. is usually a negotiated agreement between the defendant (through his lawyer) and the prosecution where the defendant agrees to plead guilty in exchange for some benefit, including, but not limited to, a reduced sentence or a reduction of charges. An Alford Plea is a guilty plea with all of the benefits and consequences of a guilty plea, but where the defendant does not admit personal guilt. is a pleaA plea agreementA plea agreement is usually a negotiated agreement between the defendant (through his lawyer) and the prosecution where the defendant agrees to plead guilty in exchange for some benefit, including, but not limited to, a reduced sentence or a reduction of charges. An Alford Plea is a guilty plea with all of the benefits and consequences of a guilty plea, but where the defendant does not admit personal guilt. is usually a negotiated agreement between the defendant (through his lawyer) and the prosecution where the defendant agrees to plead guilty in exchange for some benefit, including, but not limited to, a reduced sentence or a reduction of charges. An Alford Plea is a guilty plea with all of the benefits and consequences of a guilty plea, but where the defendant does not admit personal guilt. in which the defendant does not admit to the crime, but is telling the court, “Look, the risk of going to trial is too much, and I can’t risk that to me or my family.”

Some Wake County judges do not accept Alford pleas. And the Wake County District AttorneyA District Attorney is the represented of the State, usually elected by the people of a judicial district, to prosecute crimes on behalf of the State. The Wake County District Attorney is Colon Willoughby, Jr. A District Attorney usually has a staff, including assistant district attorneys who are the actual prosecutors who handle most of the day-to-day caseload. must agree to the Alford PleaA plea agreementA plea agreement is usually a negotiated agreement between the defendant (through his lawyer) and the prosecution where the defendant agrees to plead guilty in exchange for some benefit, including, but not limited to, a reduced sentence or a reduction of charges. An Alford Plea is a guilty plea with all of the benefits and consequences of a guilty plea, but where the defendant does not admit personal guilt. is usually a negotiated agreement between the defendant (through his lawyer) and the prosecution where the defendant agrees to plead guilty in exchange for some benefit, including, but not limited to, a reduced sentence or a reduction of charges. An Alford Plea is a guilty plea with all of the benefits and consequences of a guilty plea, but where the defendant does not admit personal guilt.. But in some cases, Alford pleas are accepted. And since the case, North Carolina v. Alford, is a United States Supreme Court case that originated in North Carolina, North Carolina is one of those states that does accept Alford pleas.

Alford pleas can be a way for you to get a favorable pleaA plea agreementA plea agreement is usually a negotiated agreement between the defendant (through his lawyer) and the prosecution where the defendant agrees to plead guilty in exchange for some benefit, including, but not limited to, a reduced sentence or a reduction of charges. An Alford Plea is a guilty plea with all of the benefits and consequences of a guilty plea, but where the defendant does not admit personal guilt. is usually a negotiated agreement between the defendant (through his lawyer) and the prosecution where the defendant agrees to plead guilty in exchange for some benefit, including, but not limited to, a reduced sentence or a reduction of charges. An Alford Plea is a guilty plea with all of the benefits and consequences of a guilty plea, but where the defendant does not admit personal guilt. agreement, or avoid very bad consequences if you lose at trial, without having to admit guilt for something you did not do. You still will face the consequences, whether it’s some jail time, or probationProbation may be either unsupervised or supervised. Unsupervised probation generally simply requires the person stay out of trouble for a specified period. If the person violates probation (perhaps by committing a new crime) the person may be required to serve an active sentence. Supervised probation requires the person to check in with a probation officer, and may have additional requirements. or fines. But you will avoid having to admit in court to something you did not do.

If you’re a lawyer, you’re locked into paying for either Westlaw or for Lexis-Nexis.  Those are the dominant players in the electronic legal research market.  But their services are awful.  Very poorly constructed, very difficult to use, very slow, hard to learn a new search language.

Google is to the rescue, but expanding its search engine to include legal research.  You can find state and federal court opinions, laws, etc.  It’s fantastic, and will only get better with time!

Eyewitnesses will swear up and down that they saw a 25 year old white male in shorts and grey t-shirt.  Or that they saw a 35 year old black male, about 5’4, wearing jeans and a hoodie. They will swear that they absolutely saw those people commit a crime.

It turns out, however, that studies show that eyewitnesses often are mistaken, confuse people they see, have trouble processing information when events happen quickly, and are biased.

I was involved in a case about a year ago where the eyewitness – a Raleigh convenience store manager – swore that our client had committed and armed robbery.  He was so convinced that when our client entered to the convenience store three weeks after the robbery to buy a drink, he and his son tackled our client and held him until police came.

Our client – who had nothing to do with the crime and was no where near the scene of the crime when it happened – was asked by police, “Where were you at 2:20 pm 22 days ago?”

Like most people, he couldn’t remember exactly where he was, so he guessed, and he guessed wrong.

He ended up in the Wake County Jail for months awaiting trial. Finally, I located conclusive proof – medical records – that showed that he in fact had gone to the hospital on that day complaining of a fever.  He simply had forgotten where he was, and when he remembered, no one would listen to him.

Even when presented with the evidence that conclusively proved our client had nothing to do with the crime, the store owner insisted our client was one of the four men who robbed him.

The juryA jury may be either a grand jury or a petit jury. A grand jury is a jury that determines whether there is probable cause to believe the defendant committed a crime. The result is an indictmentAn indictment is a finding by a grand jury that there is probable cause to believe the defendant committed a crime. An indictment is not a finding of guilt. An indictment, rather, is a method by which a prosecutor moves a case into Superior Court for resolution by plea or trial by jury. that sends the case into Superior Court, perhaps for a jury trial. A petit jury or simply a jury is the jury of 12 people who have been selected to hear and render a verdict in a case. of course believed the proof we provided, and our client went free.

But it was a lesson to me about how unreliable eyewitness testimony can be.

People like to think they can remember what happened, and juries like to believe witnesses who seem so sure.  But there’s good reason to doubt an eyewitness’ testimony.

Ironically, offering a defendant a very “sweet” or favorable pleaA plea agreementA plea agreement is usually a negotiated agreement between the defendant (through his lawyer) and the prosecution where the defendant agrees to plead guilty in exchange for some benefit, including, but not limited to, a reduced sentence or a reduction of charges. An Alford Plea is a guilty plea with all of the benefits and consequences of a guilty plea, but where the defendant does not admit personal guilt. is usually a negotiated agreement between the defendant (through his lawyer) and the prosecution where the defendant agrees to plead guilty in exchange for some benefit, including, but not limited to, a reduced sentence or a reduction of charges. An Alford Plea is a guilty plea with all of the benefits and consequences of a guilty plea, but where the defendant does not admit personal guilt. deal can have the power to pressure the defendant into taking a pleaA plea agreementA plea agreement is usually a negotiated agreement between the defendant (through his lawyer) and the prosecution where the defendant agrees to plead guilty in exchange for some benefit, including, but not limited to, a reduced sentence or a reduction of charges. An Alford Plea is a guilty plea with all of the benefits and consequences of a guilty plea, but where the defendant does not admit personal guilt. is usually a negotiated agreement between the defendant (through his lawyer) and the prosecution where the defendant agrees to plead guilty in exchange for some benefit, including, but not limited to, a reduced sentence or a reduction of charges. An Alford Plea is a guilty plea with all of the benefits and consequences of a guilty plea, but where the defendant does not admit personal guilt. offer because the risk of going to trial and being convictedA conviction is a formal finding by a court - either following a trial by a judge or jury or following the entry of a pleaA plea agreementA plea agreement is usually a negotiated agreement between the defendant (through his lawyer) and the prosecution where the defendant agrees to plead guilty in exchange for some benefit, including, but not limited to, a reduced sentence or a reduction of charges. An Alford Plea is a guilty plea with all of the benefits and consequences of a guilty plea, but where the defendant does not admit personal guilt. is usually a negotiated agreement between the defendant (through his lawyer) and the prosecution where the defendant agrees to plead guilty in exchange for some benefit, including, but not limited to, a reduced sentence or a reduction of charges. An Alford Plea is a guilty plea with all of the benefits and consequences of a guilty plea, but where the defendant does not admit personal guilt. - of guilt. is far too much to think about.

In some countries, the pleaA plea agreementA plea agreement is usually a negotiated agreement between the defendant (through his lawyer) and the prosecution where the defendant agrees to plead guilty in exchange for some benefit, including, but not limited to, a reduced sentence or a reduction of charges. An Alford Plea is a guilty plea with all of the benefits and consequences of a guilty plea, but where the defendant does not admit personal guilt. is usually a negotiated agreement between the defendant (through his lawyer) and the prosecution where the defendant agrees to plead guilty in exchange for some benefit, including, but not limited to, a reduced sentence or a reduction of charges. An Alford Plea is a guilty plea with all of the benefits and consequences of a guilty plea, but where the defendant does not admit personal guilt. offers are limited so that they can not be too favorable.  This has the effect of forcing the prosecutorA District Attorney is the represented of the State, usually elected by the people of a judicial district, to prosecute crimes on behalf of the State. The Wake County District Attorney is Colon Willoughby, Jr. A District Attorney usually has a staff, including assistant district attorneys who are the actual prosecutors who handle most of the day-to-day caseload. to present a realistic set of charges before the begins.  In the United States, too often the prosecutors pile up charge after charge after charge in the hopes that an avalanche of charges creates pressure on the defendant to accept a comparatively “sweet” or favorable pleaA plea agreementA plea agreement is usually a negotiated agreement between the defendant (through his lawyer) and the prosecution where the defendant agrees to plead guilty in exchange for some benefit, including, but not limited to, a reduced sentence or a reduction of charges. An Alford Plea is a guilty plea with all of the benefits and consequences of a guilty plea, but where the defendant does not admit personal guilt. is usually a negotiated agreement between the defendant (through his lawyer) and the prosecution where the defendant agrees to plead guilty in exchange for some benefit, including, but not limited to, a reduced sentence or a reduction of charges. An Alford Plea is a guilty plea with all of the benefits and consequences of a guilty plea, but where the defendant does not admit personal guilt. offer.

It’s not uncommon in serious felonies for a defendant to face dozen felony charges, which stacked (which is how could be sentenced) would mean a life sentence.  Someone who’s 35, never in trouble before with the law, would effectively be put away for the rest of his life.

In such a situation, many defendants take such deals.

My point is that it is so common as to be pretty non-controversial that the disparities between pleaA plea agreementA plea agreement is usually a negotiated agreement between the defendant (through his lawyer) and the prosecution where the defendant agrees to plead guilty in exchange for some benefit, including, but not limited to, a reduced sentence or a reduction of charges. An Alford Plea is a guilty plea with all of the benefits and consequences of a guilty plea, but where the defendant does not admit personal guilt. is usually a negotiated agreement between the defendant (through his lawyer) and the prosecution where the defendant agrees to plead guilty in exchange for some benefit, including, but not limited to, a reduced sentence or a reduction of charges. An Alford Plea is a guilty plea with all of the benefits and consequences of a guilty plea, but where the defendant does not admit personal guilt. offers and potential sentences are so great that in a very significant number of cases, defendants take pleas because they’ve spent extraordinary periods of time in jail awaiting trial, because the pleaA plea agreementA plea agreement is usually a negotiated agreement between the defendant (through his lawyer) and the prosecution where the defendant agrees to plead guilty in exchange for some benefit, including, but not limited to, a reduced sentence or a reduction of charges. An Alford Plea is a guilty plea with all of the benefits and consequences of a guilty plea, but where the defendant does not admit personal guilt. is usually a negotiated agreement between the defendant (through his lawyer) and the prosecution where the defendant agrees to plead guilty in exchange for some benefit, including, but not limited to, a reduced sentence or a reduction of charges. An Alford Plea is a guilty plea with all of the benefits and consequences of a guilty plea, but where the defendant does not admit personal guilt. deal looks so good, and because the risks of going to trial even when there’s very real doubt that the prosecution could make its case are too great.

In fact, it helps the prosecution a great deal to keep defendants in jail awaiting trial for many months so that they have put time toward a pleaA plea agreementA plea agreement is usually a negotiated agreement between the defendant (through his lawyer) and the prosecution where the defendant agrees to plead guilty in exchange for some benefit, including, but not limited to, a reduced sentence or a reduction of charges. An Alford Plea is a guilty plea with all of the benefits and consequences of a guilty plea, but where the defendant does not admit personal guilt. is usually a negotiated agreement between the defendant (through his lawyer) and the prosecution where the defendant agrees to plead guilty in exchange for some benefit, including, but not limited to, a reduced sentence or a reduction of charges. An Alford Plea is a guilty plea with all of the benefits and consequences of a guilty plea, but where the defendant does not admit personal guilt. sentence.  This is because North Carolina has no speedy trial statute, so unlike, say, NY, there’s only the federal constitutional right at stake, which kicks only after years into the process.

I explain in some detail the various sex offenses and sex assaults under North Carolina law.  It is particularly important if you are being accused of such crimes that you seek out an attorney early in the process.

Sex offenses are not like other offenses.  They are sometimes “he said, she said” types of cases, where there is little physical evidence and usually no witnesses.  Because admissions by a defendant may be damaging to his or her case, a defendant is well advised to consult with a lawyer before being interviewed by police about such allegations.

Even if you’ve done nothing wrong – even if you did not touch the alleged victim – it’s very important that you get the advice of an attorney early in the process.

Or you’re really nervous and don’t know what to do, and anxious about going to court.

The first thing is: relax. Court may seem intimidating. Lots of people are intimidated about it. But going to court is not the end of the world. Except for minor traffic offenses, you may have to go two or three times to court. The first time you go to court, not much will happen.

And if you’ve not yet hired an attorney before your court date, you just need to explain to the judge that you plan to hire a Raleigh, Cary, or Apex criminal lawyer and he’ll give you a new court date.

But you DO NEED TO SHOW UP IN COURT. Or you need to have an attorney appear on your behalf!

If you don’t show up or have missed a court date at the Wake County CourthouseThe Wake County Courthouse is located at 316 Fayetteville Street, Raleigh, NC 27601. Parking is available on the street or in nearby parking garages., you should call an attorney as soon as possible. Why? Because an attorney can make sure that you get a new court date, and can make sure that no Orders for Arrest have been issued for you.

You may have a good reason to miss your court date. Your kid could’ve gotten sick, the car could’ve broken down. Judges never like to hear, “Your Honor, I forgot.”

The important point, though, is to show the court that you really intend to appear for court, and you aren’t going to miss court dates again and again. An attorney may be able to make the case to the judge that he will make sure you will show up for court. That might help convince a judge to set a new court date, and strike any Orders for Arrest.

But here’s what you don’t want to happen: You don’t want to have an Order for Arrest issued so that the next Friday you get stopped for speeding, or a broken headlight or an expired registration, that the police officer checks his computer and sees that you have an Order out for your arrest, and locks you up in the Wake County Jail for a weekend.

If you have missed court dates and need a [#raleighlawyer#] to help straighten out the problem, call me at (919) 352-9411 weekdays, evenings, or weekends.

Police and investigators also know about these services, and they also know that lots of people under investigation may use Facebook, Twitter, MySpace – not just celebrities!

But there are problems with such services if you are facing a DUI, drug, misdemeanor, or felony charge.

I’ve seen instances of police investigators or detectives in Raleigh, Cary or Apex searching and printing out MySpace pages or Facebook pages where there may be evidence of “gang activity” (pictures of people flashing gang signs or referring to gangs), “drug activity” (admissions or pictures of people using drugs), or other sorts of activity that might suggest guilt. In many cases, these MySpace pages just show people having a good time, but, coupled with other evidence, they may suggest guilty or criminal conduct if ever presented to a juryA jury may be either a grand jury or a petit jury. A grand jury is a jury that determines whether there is probable cause to believe the defendant committed a crime. The result is an indictmentAn indictment is a finding by a grand jury that there is probable cause to believe the defendant committed a crime. An indictment is not a finding of guilt. An indictment, rather, is a method by which a prosecutor moves a case into Superior Court for resolution by plea or trial by jury. that sends the case into Superior Court, perhaps for a jury trial. A petit jury or simply a jury is the jury of 12 people who have been selected to hear and render a verdict in a case..

This isn’t to mean you should be paranoid.  Police don’t regularly check Facebook or MySpace or other pages like that for criminality.  But if they’re investigating a crime, and think you may be involved or know who is involved, they may check to see if you have a MySpace or Facebook page.

Where can this evidence be most damaging?  Well, let me give you one example.  Let’s imagine you’ve been stopped for a DUI.  And let’s imagine your Facebook, MySpace or Twitter page have comments you made earlier in the night that you were going out to “party” or “drink” or “get wasted”.  Let’s imagine the police really want to nail you.  It’s very easy to do a search, find if you have such a page, find out if you’ve made comments that are incriminating, and use those to suggest to a juryA jury may be either a grand jury or a petit jury. A grand jury is a jury that determines whether there is probable cause to believe the defendant committed a crime. The result is an indictmentAn indictment is a finding by a grand jury that there is probable cause to believe the defendant committed a crime. An indictment is not a finding of guilt. An indictment, rather, is a method by which a prosecutor moves a case into Superior Court for resolution by plea or trial by jury. that sends the case into Superior Court, perhaps for a jury trial. A petit jury or simply a jury is the jury of 12 people who have been selected to hear and render a verdict in a case. that you were planning to get drunk, and took no precautions when you drove your car.

Even if your Facebook or MySpace page is “private” it may not be completely private.  And even if it is private, the police could subpoena records from Facebook or MySpace of your “private” pages.  So simply making these pages “private” is not a solution.

My advice is obviously be smart about what you write on your Facebook pages, and what kind of pictures you post.  You don’t want to end up like Michael Phelps, where pictures of smoking a bong are used to prove criminal activity. And you don’t want to end up like The Hills star Stephanie Pratt who got stopped for a DUI and whose Twitter page listed her statement earlier that night that she was going out to party.

If you think you may be accused of a crime, or you’ve been stopped for a DUI in Raleigh or Cary or Apex, and you want to talk about how to handle Facebook, MySpace or Twitter social networking sites, give me a call at (919) 352-9411

In addition, there are mandatory minimum sentences for trafficking, and Wake County’s District AttorneyA District Attorney is the represented of the State, usually elected by the people of a judicial district, to prosecute crimes on behalf of the State. The Wake County District Attorney is Colon Willoughby, Jr. A District Attorney usually has a staff, including assistant district attorneys who are the actual prosecutors who handle most of the day-to-day caseload. has a very tough approach to drug crimes in the county.  More is available here.

1. You can be arrested if a judge or magistrate, upon presentation of allegations by the police, issues an arrest warrant that tells the police to take you into custodyCustody is a general term used describe a condition where an individual does not feel free to leave, as the result of a show of police authority. A person in custody must be read his Miranda rights before being questioned by police. Custody includes arrest, but may be broader than arrest..

2. You can also be arrested without an arrest warrant if the police have reasonable grounds to believe you have recently committed, are in the process of committing, or are about to commit a crime.

3. You can also be arrested in North Carolina if you have been told to appear at court, and you have failed to do so.  In that case, you will be “called and failed” and an “order for arrest” will be issued for you.

If you have been arrested or are about to be arrested, the best thing you can do is get a lawyer. That lawyer can give you immediate advice, tell you what to do and what not to do, contact bail bondsmen on your behalf if necessary, and communicate with your family on your behalf if you are held in custodyCustody is a general term used describe a condition where an individual does not feel free to leave, as the result of a show of police authority. A person in custody must be read his Miranda rights before being questioned by police. Custody includes arrest, but may be broader than arrest..

Even if you are eventually appointed a public defenderA court appointed lawyer is a lawyer appointed by the Court (sometimes via the Public Defender Office) to represent an individual in court. Only indigent (poor) people qualify for a court appointed lawyer. A public defender is a lawyer who is employed by the Public Defender Office and who only represents indigent (poor) clients. because you can’t afford a lawyer for your entire case, hiring a lawyer during the initial stages of the case – investigation and arrest – and make the difference between a not-guilty and convictionA conviction is a formal finding by a court - either following a trial by a judge or jury or following the entry of a pleaA plea agreementA plea agreement is usually a negotiated agreement between the defendant (through his lawyer) and the prosecution where the defendant agrees to plead guilty in exchange for some benefit, including, but not limited to, a reduced sentence or a reduction of charges. An Alford Plea is a guilty plea with all of the benefits and consequences of a guilty plea, but where the defendant does not admit personal guilt. is usually a negotiated agreement between the defendant (through his lawyer) and the prosecution where the defendant agrees to plead guilty in exchange for some benefit, including, but not limited to, a reduced sentence or a reduction of charges. An Alford Plea is a guilty plea with all of the benefits and consequences of a guilty plea, but where the defendant does not admit personal guilt. - of guilt. down the road.

Do not wait. Do not pass go. Do not think the police “may not arrest me.”  Do not play games and hope it will “all go away.” Call an attorney at (919) 352-9411.