You may have been charged with a crime that doesn't seem too serious to you, and perhaps, you think that the punishment won't be too severe if convicted. You might believe that it's a good idea to represent yourself in this case because hiring a lawyer will only be a wasted expense. Should you ever defend yourself in a criminal court case? Well, it depends on a few factors.

Do You Understand the Law?

The most important thing if you decide to try to defend yourself in a criminal court case is to really understand the law. This isn't just a knowing your rights in a certain type of situation, as there are nuances within laws that you might not know about that could hurt you in your case. If you are determined to defend yourself against a criminal charge, then you need to really understand how the law works and what the law says about your own case.

Do You Know How to Raise Reasonable Doubt?

In order for the prosecution to win their case, they need to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that you are guilty of this crime. If they are unable to do so, you should be found innocent and all charges dropped. A lawyer defending you works to put reasonable doubt into the minds of the judge and/or jury so that you can be found innocent.

There are many ways they can do this, by retrieving your phone records, getting your text messages, obtaining physical evidence and victim statements, getting video surveillance footage of where you said you were spending that time period, and even witnesses to say they saw you. Can you create on your own enough reasonable doubt to get your charges dropped?

How to Get A Copy of the Evidence Against You

When you are charged with a crime, your lawyer is able to get whatever evidence the prosecution has against you in order to work to disprove it. This is known as a Discovery. It includes photos, phone records, witness interviews, and more, everything that the prosecution is using to ensure you are convicted of the crime.

Do you know how to get copies of the evidence against you? You are entitled to receive it, but there is a process you need to follow, should you decide to defend yourself. You will also need to know how to dispute any of the evidence they have against you to prove you are innocent of the charge. If you feel uncomfortable with any of these tasks, consider looking into criminal defense lawyers who can help.