{"id":1402,"date":"2019-11-27T18:16:55","date_gmt":"2019-11-27T18:16:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/?p=1402"},"modified":"2019-11-27T18:16:55","modified_gmt":"2019-11-27T18:16:55","slug":"what-will-a-public-defender-do","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/what-will-a-public-defender-do\/","title":{"rendered":"What Will a Public Defender Do?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

If you were recently arrested for a crime, and now you are\nconsidering using a public defender as your legal counsel, it is important for\nyou to know what to expect if you choose a court-ordered attorney. Continue\nreading to learn what a public defender is, what they do, and what to expect\nwhen being represented by one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Criminal
Don’t settle for an overloaded public defender. Call 317-636-7514 for Indiana criminal defense.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Court-Appointed Attorneys<\/h1>\n\n\n\n

A public defender is a court-appointed attorney that is paid\nby the government to represent defendants that are incapable of affording\nprivate legal counsel. Generally, they are given to those facing jail time for\nmisdemeanor or felony charges. Although they are fully-qualified lawyers,\npublic defenders often carry a stigma implying otherwise. They have the\nequivalent training and licenses and extensive courtroom experience that\nprivate lawyers do. But this does not mean they should be a \u201cfirst choice\u201d for\nsomeone facing serious criminal charges. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Choosing a Public Defense Lawyer<\/h1>\n\n\n\n

After an arrest, a court hearing called an arraignment will\nbe scheduled. This is a defendant\u2019s initial hearing in which their criminal\ncharges will be read to them by a judge, and then they will be asked to plead\n\u2018guilty\u2019 or \u2018not guilty\u2019 to their charges. For those with private counsel, their\nattorney will already be present. As for all others, the arraignment hearing is\nwhen a defendant will be given the opportunity to accept a public defender. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If a defendant replies yes to a public defender, one will be\nappointed to them for the duration of the arraignment only, or until they can\nprove they are indigent. Eligibility requirements for public defense varies\nfrom jurisdiction to jurisdiction. Some courts may require defendants to\nprovide fee estimates from multiple private law firms, along with proof of\nfinancial records, to prove they cannot pay for private representation. While\nother courts simply take a defendant\u2019s word or allow them to choose regardless\nof how much they earn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why Private Lawyers are Best<\/h1>\n\n\n\n

Public defenders have a much heavier caseload compared to\nprivate lawyers. This means they do not have very little time to spend on each\nindividual case. For this reason, it can be risky working with one. If you are\nfacing criminal charges and possible jail time, you want to invest in an\nattorney who can dedicate 100 percent of their time and attention building a\ndefense against your charges. They are the professionals who can afford to put\ntime into protecting your rights and preserving your freedoms. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Questions About Your Indiana Criminal Case?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Call Attorney David E. Lewis at 317-636-7514<\/strong> to schedule a free initial consultation to discuss your Indiana criminal charges with a seasoned Indianapolis criminal defense attorney<\/a> you can trust. We work around the clock to ensure your rights are protected and your freedoms are preserved. You can avoid the maximum penalties for your charges with our aggressive legal representation!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Indianapolis
Schedule a Free Consultation Today!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

If you were recently arrested for a crime, and now you are considering using a public defender as your legal counsel, it is important for you to know what to expect if you choose a court-ordered attorney. Continue reading to … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1403,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,1],"tags":[7,904,905,902,903],"class_list":["post-1402","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-criminal-defense","category-criminal-law","tag-criminal-defense-attorney-indianapolis","tag-indiana-public-defender-facts","tag-public-defender-or-private-attorney","tag-public-defender-vs-lawyer","tag-public-defenders-pros-cons"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1402","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1402"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1402\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1404,"href":"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1402\/revisions\/1404"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1403"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1402"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1402"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1402"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}