Criminal Defense Lawyers

When searching for a criminal lawyer in Denver, you should be very selective. Having the right criminal lawyer can sometimes mean the difference between "not guilty" and a "guilty" verdict, or probation versus prison. The consequences are serious.

 Consider how the lawyer approaches the case; how quickly they will be able to assist you; how much time they can devote to your case; and what services the lawyer will provide. Who do you want standing next to you in the courtroom? A lawyer who is looking for the quick plea deal from the district attorney? Or the lawyer that is confident and prepared enough to go to trial if necessary?

At Benson & Case LLP, we strive to learn as much about the case as we can so that we can effectively analyze the case, advise you of your legal options, and then negotiate the best possible resolution for you. Many times this does involve a plea bargain with the district attorney. However, if a trial is necessary, be reassured that our lawyers possess the confidence and skill necessary to take your case from start to finish, no questions asked. Here is how we approach a case:

1. PROFESSIONAL INVESTIGATION It is not enough to simply read a copy of the police reports, assuming you have a complete copy. At Benson & Case, we conduct a thorough investigation to find out if there are still facts that the police, DA, and even the client did not even know. Visiting the scene, viewing the evidence, speaking to witnesses, and taking photographs are all necessary for effective representation by a good criminal lawyer. At Benson & Case, we use a professional investigators to do these tasks.
2. EXPERT RESEARCH AND ANALYTICAL THINKING Performing thorough legal research and finding you the most recent, or most relevant law is the next step our practice at Benson & Case. We take the universe of facts from our investigation, and apply them to the existing law. Many times this will involve your lawyer filing various court documents (motions) asking the judge to allow or not allow certain types of evidence. Cases can be won or lost at this stage. Benson & Case lawyers know how to identify and litigate relevant legal issues to fight your case. We will pursue every available option and file every motion to help you.
3. COMPLETE ADVISEMENT & EMPOWERMENT OF THE CLIENT As the lawyer, it is our primary job to provide expert legal advice and make you informed of all possible outcomes. At Benson & Case, we offer guidance and expert opinions in an easy to understand manner. And because we have done our homework upfront, with the investigation and legal research, we can be confident that the advice we provide to you is sound. We go through and explain every choice and scenario available to you. As the client, you make the decisions. This is your case. At Benson & Case, we do NOT tell you what to do or force you to take a plea bargain. We respect you and support your decisions, whatever they may be. We are willing to fight from beginning to end on your case.
4. WORKING RELATIONSHIP WITH THE DISTRICT ATTORNEY The district attorney is entrusted with applying the law and protecting the public. They have broad discretion on who and how to prosecute. Having a lawyer who has an open line of communication with the district attorney, and a mutually respectful relationship is very valuable. NO LAWYER can promise a client a specific result. The district attorney has the final say on a plea bargain, and at trial, the judge or the jury has the final say on a verdict. If you meet a lawyer who promises you a specific plea or verdict - run! At Benson & Case, we engage is negotiations with the district attorney to attempt to reach a positive result prior to trial. Sometimes this involves pointing out unreliable facts, or weaknesses in the case. At Benson & Case, we make every effort to reach an excellent result for our clients prior to trial.
5. EFFECTIVE TRIAL SKILLS In the event a resolution is not reached with the district attorney, you need a lawyer who knows what he is doing in the courtroom at trial. Whether arguing an issue in front of a judge or in front of a jury, you must have a skilled, confident, prepared lawyer who can effectively communicate your case. This is where many lawyers fall short. Many lawyers rarely ever get to trial. At Benson & Case, our lawyers have spent most of their time in the courtroom and in trial. You can be assured that should you need a trial lawyer, you will be represented by the best.

A criminal defense lawyer is a lawyer specializing in the defense of individuals and companies charged with criminal conduct. Criminal defense lawyers can be permanently employed by the various jurisdictions with criminal courts. Such lawyers are often called public defenders. For a much more extensive discussion of criminal defense, see public defender. The terminology is imprecise because each jurisdiction may have different practices with various levels of input from state and federal law or consent decrees. Other jurisdictions use a rotating system of appointments with judges appointing a private practice attorney or firm for each case. In the United States, criminal defense lawyers deal with the issues surrounding arrest of his or her client (Fourth Amendment), as well as any statements the client may have made (Fifth Amendment). Criminal defense lawyers also deal with the substantive issues of the crimes with which his or her clients are charged. In the United States criminal defendants are entitled to the presumption of innocence until prosecutors prove each essential element of a crime beyond a reasonable doubt. Serious crimes (e.g. felonies) in the United States are tried to juries of twelve people and the jury must be unanimous in its verdict to either convict or acquit the defendant. A split in the jury is often called a "hung jury" and may result in a retrial of the defendant. Criminal defense lawyers actively pursue their client's cause through all stages of a criminal prosecution. Criminal defense lawyers in the United States who are employed by governmental entities such as counties, state governments, and the federal government are often referred to as public defenders.

This section was authored by Wikipedia and the sources cited therein.

Criminal law, or penal law, is the body of rules that defines conduct that is prohibited by the state because it is held to threaten, harm or otherwise endanger the safety and welfare of the public, and that sets out the punishment to be imposed on those who breach these laws. Criminal law is enforced by the state, unlike the civil law which may be enforced by private parties. Criminal law is distinctive for the uniquely serious potential consequences or sanctions for failure to abide by its rules. Every crime is composed of criminal elements. Capital punishment may be imposed in some jurisdictions for the most serious crimes. Physical or corporal punishment may be imposed such as whipping or caning, although these punishments are prohibited in much of the world. Individuals may be incarcerated in prison or jail in a variety of conditions depending on the jurisdiction. Confinement may be solitary. Length of incarceration may vary from a day to life. Government supervision may be imposed, including house arrest, and convicts may be required to conform to particularized guidelines as part of a parole or probation regimen. Fines also may be imposed, seizing money or property from a person convicted of a crime. Five objectives are widely accepted for enforcement of the criminal law by punishments: retribution, deterrence, incapacitation, rehabilitation and restitution. Jurisdictions differ on the value to be placed on each.

Retribution - Criminals ought to suffer in some way. This is the most widely seen goal. Criminals have taken improper advantage, or inflicted unfair detriment, upon others and consequently, the criminal law will put criminals at some unpleasant disadvantage to "balance the scales." People submit to the law to receive the right not to be murdered and if people contravene these laws, they surrender the rights granted to them by the law. Thus, one who murders may be murdered himself. A related theory includes the idea of "righting the balance." Deterrence - Individual deterrence is aimed toward the specific offender. The aim is to impose a sufficient penalty to discourage the offender from criminal behavior. General deterrence aims at society at large. By imposing a penalty on those who commit offenses, other individuals are discouraged from committing those offenses. Incapacitation - Designed simply to keep criminals away from society so that the public is protected from their misconduct. This is often achieved through prison sentences today. The death penalty or banishment have served the same purpose. Rehabilitation - Aims at transforming an offender into a valuable member of society. Its primary goal is to prevent further offense by convincing the offender that their conduct was wrong.

Restitution - This is a victim-oriented theory of punishment. The goal is to repair, through state authority, any hurt inflicted on the victim by the offender. For example, one who embezzles will be required to repay the amount improperly acquired. Restitution is commonly combined with other main goals of criminal justice and is closely related to concepts in the civil law. The criminal law generally prohibits undesirable acts. Thus, proof of a crime requires proof of some act. Scholars label this the requirement of an actus reus or guilty act. Some crimes·– particularly modern regulatory offenses·– require no more, and they are known as strict liability offenses (E.g. Under the Road traffic Act 1988 it is a strict liability offence to drive a vehicle with an alcohol concentration above the prescribed limit). Nevertheless, because of the potentially severe consequences of criminal conviction, judges at common law also sought proof of an intent to do some bad thing, the mens rea or guilty mind. As to crimes of which both actus reus and mens rea are requirements, judges have concluded that the elements must be present at precisely the same moment and it is not enough that they occurred sequentially at different times.

Actus reus is Latin for "guilty act" and is the physical element of committing a crime. It may be accomplished by an action, by threat of action, or exceptionally, by an omission to act, which is a legal duty to act. For example, the act of A striking B might suffice, or a parent's failure to give food to a young child also may provide the actus reus for a crime. Where the actus reus is a failure to act, there must be a duty of care. A duty can arisethrough contract, a voluntary undertaking,[9] a blood relation with whom one lives, and occasionally through one's official position. Duty also can arise from one's own creation of a dangerous situation. On the other hand, it was held in the U.K. that switching off the life support of someone in a persistent vegetative state is an omission to act and not criminal. Since discontinuation of power is not a voluntary act, not grossly negligent, and is in the patient's best interests, no crime takes place. In this caseit was held that since a PVS patient could not give or withhold consent to medical treatment, it was for the doctors to decide whether treatment was in the patients best interest. It was reasonable for them to conclude that treatment was not in the patients best interest, and should therefore be stopped, when there was no prospect of improvement. It was never lawful to take active steps to causeor accelerate death, although in certain circumstances it was lawful to withhold life sustaining treatment, including feeding, without which the patient would die. An actus reus may be nullified by an absence of causation. For example, a crime involves harm to a person, the person's action must be the but for causeand proximate causeof the harm. If more than one causeexists (e.g. harm comes at the hands of more than one culprit) the act must have "more than a slight or trifling link" to the harm. Causation is not broken simply because a victim is particularly vulnerable. This is known as the thin skull rule. However, it may be broken by an intervening act (novus actus interveniens) of a third party, the victim's own conduct, or another unpredictable event. A mistake in medical treatment typically will not sever the chain, unless the mistakes are in themselves "so potent in causing death."

Mens reais another Latin phrase, meaning "guilty mind". This is the mental element of the crime. A guilty mind means an intention to commit some wrongful act. Intention under criminal law is separate from a person's motive. If Mr. Hood robs from rich Mr. Nottingham because his motive is to give the money to poor Mrs. Marian, his "good intentions" do not change his criminal intention to commit robbery. A lower threshold of mens reais satisfied when a defendant recognises an act is dangerous but decides to commit it anyway. This is recklessness. For instance, if C tears a gas meter from a wall to get the money inside, and knows this will let flammable gas escape into a neighbor's house, he could be liable for poisoning. Courts often consider whether the actor did recognize the danger, or alternatively ought to have recognized a risk. Of course, a requirement only that one ought to have recognized a danger (though he did not) is tantamount to erasing intent as a requirement. In this way, the importance of mens reahas been reduced in some areas of the criminal law. Wrongfulness of intent also may vary the seriousness of an offense. A killing committed with specific intent to kill or with conscious recognition that death or serious bodily harm will result, would be murder, whereas a killing effected by reckless acts lacking such a consciousness could be manslaughter. On the other hand, it matters not who is actually harmed through a defendant's actions. The doctrine of transferred malice means, for instance, that if a man intends to strike a person with his belt, but the belt bounces off and hits another, mens rea is transferred from the intended target to the person who actually was struck.[Note: The notion of transferred intent does not exist within Scots' Law. In Scotland, one would not be charged with assault due to transferred intent, but instead assault due to recklessness.] Strict liability can be described as criminal or civil liability notwithstanding the lack mens rea or intent by the defendant. Not all crimes require specific intent, and the threshold of culpability required may be reduced. For example, it might be sufficient to show that a defendant acted negligently, rather than intentionally or recklessly. In offenses of absolute liability, other than the prohibited act, it may not be necessary to show the act was intentional. Generally, crimes must include an intentional act, and "intent" is an element that must be proved in order to find a crime occurred. The idea of a "strict liability crime" is an oxymoron. The few exceptions are not truly crimes at all - but are administrative regulations and civil penalties created by statute, such as crimes against the traffic or highway code.

A murder, defined broadly, is an unlawful killing. Unlawful killing is probably the act most frequently targeted by the criminal law. In many jurisdictions, the crime of murder is divided into various gradations of severity, e.g., murder in the first degree, based on intent. Malice is a required element of murder. Manslaughter (Culpable Homicide in Scotland) is a lesser variety of killing committed in the absence of malice, brought about by reasonable provocation, or diminished capacity. Involuntary manslaughter, where it is recognized, is a killing that lacks all but the most attenuated guilty intent, recklessness. Many criminal codes protect the physical integrity of the body. The crime of battery is traditionally understood as an unlawful touching, although this does not include everyday knocks and jolts to which people silently consent as the result of presence in a crowd. Creating a fear of imminent battery is an assault, and also may give riseto criminal liability. Non-consensual intercourse, or rape, is a particularly egregious form of battery. Property often is protected by the criminal law. Trespassing is unlawful entry onto the real property of another. Many criminal codes provide penalties for conversion, embezzlement, theft, all of which involve deprivations of the value of the property. Robbery is a theft by force. Fraud in the UK is a breach of the Fraud Act 2006 by falserepresentation, by failure to disclose information or by abuse of position. Some criminal codes criminalize association with a criminal venture or involvement in criminality that does not actually come to fruition. Some examples are aiding, abetting, conspiracy, and attempt. However, in Scotland, the English concept of Aiding and Abetting is known as Art and Part Liability. See Glanville Williams, Textbook of Criminal Law, (London: Stevens & Sons, 1983); Glanville Williams, Criminal Law the General Part (London: Stevens & Sons, 1961). While crimes are typically broken into degrees or classes to punish appropriately, all offenses can be divided into 'mala in se' and 'mala prohibita' laws. Both are Latin legal terms, mala in se meaning crimes that are thought to be inherently evil or morally wrong, and thus will be widely regarded as crimes regardless of jurisdiction. Mala in se offenses are felonies, property crimes, immoral acts and corrupt acts by public officials. Mala prohibita, on the other hand, refers to offenses that do not have wrongfulness associated with them. Parking in a restricted area, driving the wrong way down a one-way street, jaywalking or unlicensed fishing are examples of acts that are prohibited by statute, but without which are not considered wrong. Mala prohibita statutes are usually imposed strictly, as there does not need to be mens rea component for punishment under those offenses, just the act itself. For this reason, it can be argued that offenses that are mala prohibita are not really crimes at all.

This section was authored by Wikipedia and the sources cited therein.

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