In every city and county in the State of Georgia and the United States innocent citizens have criminal charges filed against them, even when they are innocent. No matter why the charges were filed, you are probably wondering what you can do in this situation and how you can avoid going to trial or getting a conviction. Below are a few ways that you and your criminal attorney can get you out of this position.

FILING DECISION

Prosecutors make the decision to file formal charges based upon the information available to them. Though a police officer has arrest powers if they witness a crime, the police cannot formally charge any person with a crime. Prosecutors make such a decision based upon police investigation and reports involving the event in question. Preliminary police reports are undetailed and provide a limited amount of evidence, which are often incorrect, distort small details, and may be completely wrong. Victims and witnesses can lie and police officers have their own biases, all of which can contribute to a false police report. If the charges in the report are baseless, the defendant can still go to court and hope for an acquittal. This, however, is risky, stressful, and very pricey. For these reasons, a great defense lawyer can try to nip it in the bud before the case makes it that far.

DISMISSAL

A good criminal defense lawyer in Atlanta, Marietta or in Federal Court can become involved in the case early in the process. Your lawyer will ask you for your recollection of the event and any other relevant facts. From there, they will decide the best course of action. They may choose to investigate the incident and gather their own information. With the evidence collected, your attorney can try to get the case dismissed before it ever gets started by making contact with the prosecution. Even if formal charges are later brought against you a good criminal lawyer may be able to later get your case dismissed without trial.

WAIT

In some limited situations, the best thing you can do is simply wait. It can take time for the prosecution to discover that the case has insufficient evidence for a conviction. This can happen if a witness recants their story or if they are otherwise not credible. In the situation where charges are suddenly brought, the case may go away at a preliminary stage in the case before a neutral and detached magistrate judge where the evidence of probable cause is insufficient or after formal charges are filed if your criminal defense attorney wins a pretrial motion. There are a few different in-court scenarios that can cause your case to end quickly without a plea or a trial.

CONTACT AN ATTORNEY

If criminal charges are filed against you, you will undoubtedly need to find an excellent criminal defense attorney. Only a skilled and professional lawyer can perform the tasks mentioned in this article. Attorney Thurston Lopes is an experienced criminal defense attorney who can help you determine the best method to use to give you the best chance of having the case dropped before a trial.  Contact The Lopes Law Firm at (404) 589-9000 today.