As Indiana criminal lawyers, we are here to help you. Faced with police arrest and criminal prosecution you should not be expected to know what steps to take to ensure that your legal rights are protected. The choices you make now can have a lasting effect on your future. We are experienced Indiana criminal lawyers and Indiana dui attorneys practicing criminal and dui defense throughout the State of Indiana each and every day. As Indiana criminal defense lawyers, we know what steps to take and when to take them to enhance the likelihood of a prompt and favorable resolution to your case.

What a capable Indiana criminal lawyer should do in your defense:

As Indiana criminal lawyers we recognize that although each criminal case in Indiana is different, the desires of our clients are the same. We are Indiana criminal lawyers who recognize the anxiety and hardship associated with a prolonged criminal prosecution and work to rapidly move for the dismissal or reduction of all criminal charges against you. Where applicable, we work to provide alternatives that limit the likelihood of a criminal penalty affecting your liberty and livelihood.

Stark Law Offices, P.C. Indiana criminal lawyers who recognize the need for a pro active defense

An Indiana criminal lawyer or Indiana dui lawyer must recognize the importance of preserving all of our client's legal rights, whether one has been charged with a crime or being investigated.

We believe that an Indiana criminal lawyer must take an aggressive posture in defending our client's rights as soon as an individual believes that he or she is the target of an Indiana criminal investigation or charge.

As a general rule we advise our clients to remain silent and refer any questions to us if contacted by any Indiana law enforcement officials.

It is often natural to trust and believe that one in law enforcement will be open to your statements and will look out for your best interests when conducting an investigation. As Indiana criminal lawyers we assume that they will not. As a result, it is our belief that an Indiana criminal lawyer should generally not allow you to speak without an attorney for fear that it will impair your ability to present the best possible criminal defense.

As Indiana criminal lawyers it is our obligation to always remind clients charged with an Indiana criminal offense that you have the right to remain silent and to have a criminal lawyer in Indiana at all stages of an Indiana prosecution. It is all too easy to lose legal protections in Indiana without the help of an Indiana criminal lawyer who is trained to understand the ins and outs of the criminal process.

Experienced Indiana criminal defense lawyers understand that everything you say can and will always be used against you in an Indiana court of law. Countless times our clients have been told by Indiana law enforcement officials that they would receive better treatment if they would speak freely to them and cooperate. An experienced Indiana criminal lawyer understands that police officers and other law enforcement officials have no legal authority to make agreements that bind Indiana prosecutors.

Your Indiana criminal lawyer needs to know that police officers cannot make things better for you once criminal charges are filed in Indiana. Too many veteran criminal attorneys in Indiana have heard the claim that an innocent person has nothing to hide and does not need the services of an Indiana criminal lawyer. Don't fall for these tactics that serve no purpose other than to diminish your legal criminal rights in Indiana.

If you have not yet been charged with a criminal offense in Indiana, it is important for an Indiana criminal lawyer to explain the criminal process.

One suspected of committing a criminal offense in Indiana can either be charged by a prosecutor after their own internal investigation or have the investigation submitted to a grand jury to decide if criminal charges are warranted.

Most criminal investigations in Indiana are not brought before a grand jury. As a result, it is critical that an Indiana criminal defense lawyer communicate the importance of a pro active defense.

Having a criminal attorney in Indiana intervene before charges are filed can often result in convincing a prosecutor not to file criminal charges or to reduce the charges a client would otherwise be facing. An experienced Indiana criminal lawyer understands that no charges or enhancements brought against a client is always better than an arrest and dismissal later on.

Recent developments confronting Indiana criminal lawyers involve the use of Habitual Offender Statutes and Habitual Substance Offender Statutes (HSO) and the significant additional punishment that can potentially arise to clients who delay in retaining an Indiana criminal lawyer until after such an enhancement has been filed.

As experienced Indiana criminal lawyers practicing throughout the State of Indiana, it is our belief that unrepresented clients too often face more of a likelihood of the charges they are facing being enhanced by the arbitrary imposition of such statutes.

In the case of the Habitual Substance Offender statute for example, one charged with a third alcohol or drug related conviction may qualify at the Indiana prosecutor's discretion for the mandatory imposition of 3-8 years in prison. It is often discussed among Indiana criminal defense lawyers that an overreaching county prosecutor could conceivably abuse such statutes to use mere possession of Marijuana and alcohol convictions to imprison someone longer than one convicted of a violent felony.

In the case of the general habitual statutes it is vital that your Indiana criminal defense lawyer understand and communicate that depending on the legal circumstances of a case, one can face an additional thirty years imprisonment to enhance an offense charged.

These are just one of many examples as to why your Indiana criminal lawyer must be pro active in doing everything in his or her power to head off such additional penalties and enhancements if at all possible.

Where criminal charges are in question before an Indiana prosecutor, an Indiana criminal lawyer must also have an understanding of the grand jury process.

What is known as a grand jury in Indiana hears potential evidence by a prosecutor's office in Indiana and determines whether to issue what is known as a criminal indictment. The grand jury in Indiana is an independent body of citizens, whose function includes not only the investigation of a crime in Indiana but also the protection of those facing groundless charges and investigations.

While a grand jury in Indiana is sometimes described as performing accusatory and investigative functions, the grand jury's principal function is to determine whether or not there is probable cause in Indiana to believe that one or more persons committed a certain offense within the State of Indiana.

An Indiana criminal lawyer must know grand jury rules where potential charges will be decided not by an Indiana prosecutor but by citizens who will hear evidence brought before them.

Experienced Indiana criminal lawyers know to advise a client that he or she need not appear before such a body if they are a target of a criminal investigation or restrict or eliminate their testimony altogether if their appearance could diminish their legal protections and incriminate them where called as a witness.

What might be surprising to people is the fact that an Indiana criminal defense lawyer may not appear before a grand jury once the client comes before it to give testimony. It is therefore of the utmost importance that your Indiana criminal lawyer understand such legal rules to provide you with every legal protection available under Indiana law.

Whether Indiana criminal charges result from the decision of a county prosecutor or a grand jury in state or federal proceedings, your Indiana criminal lawyer must have the experience and training to clearly help you understand what is going on and why in order to protect you.

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