Under Investigation or Arrested—Now what?

If you or someone you care about is being investigated as a suspect or has been arrested, call 803-748-9990, toll free 877-728-3734, or email the attorneys of Masella Law Firm, P.A., right away. The United States and South Carolina Constitutions provide you, among other rights, the right to legal representation, the right to have your attorney present during all questioning, and the right to refrain from giving testimony that may incriminate you.  The lawyers at Masella Law Firm, P.A., can represent you regardless of the charges.  Invoke your constitutional rights and call Masella Law Firm, P.A., to help protect yourself.
Suspected

If the police or another authority actually witnesses a crime, they may arrest without an investigation. In some situations, the police may conduct a proactive investigation, or the prosecutor may conduct a prosecutorial investigation, such as when they suspect a person of dealing drugs. (Please refer to drug crimes.)  Most arrests are the result of a reactive investigation, however, and in those situations the police conduct an investigation to determine if a crime was committed, who committed the crime, and if there is any evidence to substantiate the crime or who committed it, and if so, then they may make an arrest.

Long investigations are common with respect to certain types of crimes, such as computer crimes, child pornography, drug crimes, embezzlement, fraud, homicide, property crimes, rape, stalking, theft, and white collar crimes.  During an investigation, an investigator or police officer may approach you to ask you questions.  To gain your cooperation, the investigator may tell you that you need not have your lawyer present because you are not under arrest.

The suspect in an investigation often becomes the defendant in a courtroom, however, and the evidence gathered during the investigation, including your statements, often becomes the proof required to file a criminal charge.  You have the right to have your lawyer present during ALL questioning, and you have the right to refuse to provide answers that may be used against you.  If you are not sure whether you should answer a question, ask to have your lawyer present.

In some situations, a person is not afforded the time to contact their lawyer, such as when a police officer pulls you over and then arrests you for drunk driving (which in South Carolina is called Driving Under the Influence (DUI), or Driving with Unlawful Alcohol Concentration (DUAC)), or when you are just in the wrong place at the wrong time.  In those situations, invoke your rights, and then call or have someone call 803-748-9990, toll free 877-728-3734, or email the attorneys at Masella Law Firm, P.A., right away.  The attorneys at Masella Law Firm, P.A., can defend you regardless of the charges.

The information at this site is not and is not intended to be legal advice or a legal opinion. Nothing at this site creates an attorney-client relationship. Please read our full disclaimer.

Post-Arrest Investigation
After a person is arrested, the police might conduct further investigations, which can include questioning the arrested person, as well as other people.  A series of screening and investigation occurs across many departments of the justice system as the decision is made whether to charge the arrested person, and with what.  In some situations the ensuing charge is evident; however, even in those situations and in other situations, your criminal defense lawyer may be able to persuade the prosecutor not to proceed with charges, or in the alternative, to proceed with lesser charges, such as reducing the charge from a felony to misdemeanor.  At Masella Law Firm, P.A., we employ various experienced investigators to help develop your case and subsequent defense.  The most prepared defense is one prepared with the jury’s ears and eyes in mind.  Your case has to be developed by a team who can prepare a defense suitable to your facts.  Masella Law Firm, P.A., is ready to help you.

The information at this site is not and is not intended to be legal advice or a legal opinion. Nothing at this site creates an attorney-client relationship. Please read our full disclaimer.

Bonded Out of Jail
Bond is an amount of money or security that a judge determines is necessary to assure the defendant’s appearance in court after permitting the defendant’s release from custody.  The actual charge or charges and their classification (misdemeanor or felony) determine if, when, and how you can get out of jail.  To determine your bond, the bond judge generally will determine whether you are a danger to the community and the likelihood that you will show up at court on the scheduled date, and review your past criminal history, the length of time you have resided in or around the county in which the alleged offense or offenses occurred, as well as the charge or charges.  Bond amounts range from a signature or personal recognizance bond to a monetary amount that can be secured with property or the services of a bondsman.  Misdemeanor and most felony bonds are generally set by a magistrate, but bonds for felony charges that potentially carry lengthy sentences, such as murder, first-degree burglary, and first-degree criminal sexual conduct with a minor, for example, will be set by a circuit court judge.

If there is a likelihood that the defendant is a danger to the community, or likely to flee, the judge may either deny the defendant bond, or set a high bond in an attempt to deter the defendant from causing harm after release due to the fact that the bond money the defendant posts may be estreated by (forfeited to) the state.  In addition, the judge may put additional conditions on the bond, such as house arrest, electronic monitoring, and no contact with the victim.  If the defendant is unable to make or post bond, a bondsman can be hired to assist in the release of the defendant. 

Our attorneys understand what is necessary to assist you or your loved one after arrest.  Give us a call immediately at 803-748-9990, toll free 877-728-3734, or email the criminal defense lawyers at Masella Law Firm, P.A., right away so we can give you the advice you may need to be released as inexpensively as possible.

The information at this site is not and is not intended to be legal advice or a legal opinion. Nothing at this site creates an attorney-client relationship. Please read our full disclaimer.

Free on Bond—Now What?
The first priority for anyone recently released from jail on a cash or signature bond is to prepare for the next court date.  Consider this:  Some event occurred that resulted in an arrest.  That arrest occurred because the police or other authority believes that evidence exists to substantiate that a crime was committed, and that evidence will be sitting on the other side of the courtroom in the very near future.

The best way to prepare for your next court date is to immediately contact a very experienced criminal defense lawyer.  With so many lawyers out there, you may be wondering how to choose a criminal defense lawyer for your immediate needs. Perhaps the single most important criterion in choosing the right criminal defense lawyer for you and your situation is “trust.” Considering that this may be your very first contact with or need for a criminal defense lawyer, how can you possibly know which one to trust?
Masella Law Firm, P.A., is just such a firm.  The criminal defense lawyers at Masella Law Firm, P.A. Robert M.P. Masella, Prentiss Counts, and Reynolds H. Blankenship, Jr.¾stand ready to defend you regardless of the charges.  Their record clearly reflects their hard work, their intelligent and professional approach to their cases, and their skill in developing a strategy that fits an individual client’s case.

This record of success and professionalism also gives clients another important advantage: having lawyers with a strong professional reputation often causes prosecutors to make very favorable settlement offers (sometimes called “plea bargains” or “plea agreements”) in order to avoid a trial or hearing at which Masella Law Firm, P.A., might prevail.  Although there are no guarantees, at least you will know that you have the good, solid, competent, experienced, well-regarded, and highly respected help of Masella Law Firm, P.A.

Let’s face it, many people investigated, charged with, or convicted of a criminal or drunk-driving offense are not wholly innocent.  Many people hire criminal lawyers not to “fight to the bitter end,” but rather to help them avoid or minimize the often unduly punitive consequences of what was really a one-time mistake, a poor use of judgment, or a rash step taken with little thought and too much emotion.  Our clients’ cases often arise from difficult problems with alcohol, drugs, money woes, or struggling domestic relationships.  When you are seeking that sort of help, it helps to know that because of the past successes of the attorneys at Masella Law Firm, P.A., they may be able to obtain a very favorable outcome for you, even when everything about the situation seems bleak and hopeless.  By placing your case in our hands, you can step back and leave the hard work to us.  Although there are no guarantees, at least you will know that you have the good, solid, competent, experienced, well-regarded, and highly respected help of Masella Law Firm, P.A.
When you need a lawyer you can trust, call 803-748-9990, toll free 877-728-3734, or email the criminal defense lawyers at Masella Law Firm, P.A., right away.

The information at this site is not and is not intended to be legal advice or a legal opinion. Nothing at this site creates an attorney-client relationship. Please read our full disclaimer.