Why You Need a Skilled Criminal Defense Attorney for Financial Crimes
If you’re being investigated or have been charged with a white collar crime, you know the stakes are high. Fraud, money laundering, and tax evasion, among other charges, carry serious criminal penalties and can impact the rest of your life. These crimes, although non-violent in nature, are investigated thoroughly and punished severely. Those convicted of white collar crimes face hefty fines, lengthy federal prison sentences, forfeiture of assets, restitution, and more. Often, investigations into white collar crimes take years to button up. Part of the reason for this is to give you as little wiggle room as possible for an effective defense. For this reason, it’s imperative to hire a skilled white collar criminal defense attorney with experience in litigating state and federal cases.
Should you be indicted and proceed to trial, our Daytona Beach defense lawyers at Hager & Schwartz, P.A. are prepared to defend you. Because we are your strongest legal advocates, we make every effort to employ exhaustive fact-finding and solicit expert interviews to bolster your defense.
Possible defenses to white collar criminal charges include:
- Entrapment: If you committed a crime under duress, for example, it can help bolster the defense that someone else forced you to commit a crime. This is one of the more common defense strategies.
- Lack of intent: In some instances, you can show you had no intent to defraud anyone, say, if you accidentally committed a tax crime, yet had no intention to reap a profit.
- Incapacity: White collar crimes are often perpetrated by highly intelligent business people who have the mental capacity to understand the nature of their alleged crimes. Those who are incapacitated to some extent often cannot do so.
- Insanity: To be “insane” in the legal sense is not the same as being simply “crazy.” It means the defendant could not distinguish right from wrong because of a mental defect. This can be extraordinarily hard to prove if explicit intent is shown over a long period of time.
Some defendants find that the evidence stacked against them is too overwhelming to take their chances at trial. In these instances, it may be in your best interest to plead guilty, and you may be able to secure a reduced sentence by doing so. Even if you decide that a plea deal is your most worthwhile option and decide to forego a trial, our lawyers have experience negotiating favorable terms with our extensive familiarity with the U.S. Federal Sentencing Guidelines, and other factors that affect sentencing. Depending on many factors, including the nature of the offense and amount of money involved, sentences can vary widely.
Charged with a White Collar Crime? Request a Consultation with Our Daytona Beach Criminal Defense Attorneys.
Once you learn of an impending investigation against you for financial crimes, you should immediately enlist the help of a criminal defense attorney. A skilled white collar crime lawyer can advise you to exercise your Miranda rights to stay silent and your fifth amendment rights against self-incrimination, which could prove to be of great benefit to your defense.
If you’re accused of committing a financial crime, contact us at (386) 693-1637 for an immediate case evaluation today.