Phoenix DUI Lawyer Blog

"If your rights have been violated, it can often lead to dismissal of evidence or criminal charges against you in Chandler AZ. The key to a successful defense based on this premise is to retain an experienced criminal defense or DUI lawyer investigate and raise compelling arguments on your behalf.

Experienced criminal defense and DUI lawyers who defend criminal charges in Chandler are naturally very familiar with the laws, and how to use them in favor of your defense. It's a good idea for you to be familiar with your criminal rights before you get charged or arrested in Chandler AZ, so that you can invoke or verbalize them when necessary. Often there is a misconception that laws and procedures are in place only to use against you in order to arrest, or convict you. But in fact, laws also exist to protect you, even if you are accused of committing a crime.

To simplify, we will break them down into three types of criminal rights: 1) Federal Rights (those afforded by The United States Constitution (Constitutional Rights); 2) State Rights (Arizona Constitution and State Laws); 3) Procedural Rights (those related to formal charges in the AZ criminal justice and criminal court process. Below are some of the most common criminal rights (list is not all inclusive):

• The Right to "an attorney", criminal or DUI defense, without unjust delays (must be invoked by the accused );
• The Right to "remain silent" (must be invoked by the accused);
• The Right to "due process" in the criminal justice system to defend the charges;
• The Right to avoid self-incrimination;
• The Right to plead "not guilty";
• The Right to use justifiable defenses;
• The Right to obtain and present exculpatory evidence (in favor of the accused);
• The Right to challenge the credibility or accuracy of evidence the prosecution intends to use;
• The Right to a fair and speedy jury trial (in situations where a jury trial is eligible);
• The Right to freedom from unwarranted "search and seizure" of property, vehicle, and person, (in absence of a valid search warrant, or "plain sight" exclusion.)
• The Right not to be subject to "cruel and unusual" punishment.
• "Double Jeopardy" prohibition; The Right not to be charged, arrested or tried twice in criminal court of law, for the same criminal incident as originally charged.

If you have active Chandler AZ criminal or DUI charges, and you feel your rights have been violated, you should contact an experienced criminal or DUI lawyer who defends Chandler charges as soon as possible. Violations of constitutional rights can lead to dismissals of evidence or your Chandler criminal or DUI charges. Such allegations by a defendant involve certain evidentiary issues that must be supported and complexities in the criminal justice system. For these reasons, your chances of getting a good outcome for challenging constitutional right violations are the most successful if investigated and argued by an experienced Chandler criminal defense or DUI lawyer.