St. Louis Assault Lawyer

If you or a loved one are facing an assault charge it is imperative to hire an experienced attorney familiar with handling serious assault charges. In a lot of ways being charged with an assault is the same as being charged with murder. Lengthy prison sentences and mandatory minimum percentages are enforced in the exact same way as a homicide case. Similar to a murder charge, assault charges also come in varying degrees with different levels of possible punishment. For this reason, it is extremely important to have an experienced attorney that routinely handles serious assault cases. The difference between the degrees of an assault charge could dramatically change the outlook of your life. It could be the difference between facing a short prison sentence or probation and facing ten to life in prison served at 85% before eligible for parole. Our top-rated lawyers have the experience and skill to navigate the rough and scary waters of a serious assault charge. We have obtained numerous not guilty verdicts at jury trial, and we have also leveraged that winning reputation to obtain hundreds of reduced charges and favorable plea bargains for our clients without the need for a trial.

REDUCED CHARGES

These days it is easier than ever to be charged with a felony assault charge. Needless to say, any felony charge is serious, but a felony assault charge seems worse in many ways. Unfortunately, assault charges are often overcharged by the police and prosecutors initially. Whether this is out of an abundance of caution against undercharging an assault, or simply a ploy by the state to increase negotiating leverage later on in the case, it is a serious problem and is prevalent in our legal system. This often means that even if the defendant is guilty of some type of assault, they are facing an extreme possible punishment based on the arbitrary way that police or prosecutors might try and word the charge to make it a more serious offense. This can affect multiple aspects of your case from start to finish. For example, a more seriously charged assault may require a much higher bond or a cash-only bond, whereas a lower assault charge the defendant may be able to post a more reasonable bond and relax in their own bed while the case drags on in court. Furthermore, an assault that is overcharged is often used as leverage to make the defendant fold to a plea deal rather than risk taking the more serious charge to trial. The top criminal defense lawyers at The People’s Counsel know the strengths and weaknesses of assault cases and won’t be pushed around by an embellishing police officer or an overzealous prosecutor. We have time and time again taken tough cases to trial because the prosecutor failed to make a reasonable plea bargain offer to our client. Over time our reputation has become renowned for trying assault cases to not guilty verdicts, thereby encouraging prosecutors to extend fair and honest plea bargains instead of posturing behind a more serious charge simply for strategic leverage.

PROBATION

Although probation is an available option for most assault cases, it is less forthcoming from prosecutors in assault cases. Even first-time offenders can end up with felony convictions on their permanent criminal records and serving prison time. Simply put, assault defendants are easy targets for prosecutors looking to take a “tough stance” on crime. For these reasons, and the presence of a victim, probation is not as common as in other charges. Our assault attorneys our proven negotiators and have obtained favorable probation dispositions for many of our clients, even when the initial outlook was not exactly promising. Part of our unique negotiating leverage lies with our distinguished track record for winning cases at trial. Having successfully defended numerous assault cases to outright not guilty verdicts at trial, our reputation brings that extra oomph to your pretrial negotiations that could be the difference between probation and time in prison. We are also very experienced with “self-defense” cases. We have won many cases where our client did, in fact, harm another person but the jury found that they acted in self-defense, thereby acquitting them of all criminal charges. Rather than take the chance of losing at trial, a prosecutor may be persuaded to work out a plea bargain in exchange for probation.

TRIALS

Of course, the best criminal defense attorneys in St. Louis are adept at taking these serious cases to trial. It is a certainty that some assault cases will need to go to trial. With a living victim combined with the serious nature of the offense, it is often the case that a plea deal will not be forthcoming nor in the client’s best interest. Furthermore, the prosecutor’s office usually puts their best and most experienced prosecutors on these types of cases. Therefore, it is imperative for the defendant to also have an experienced attorney that is capable and willing to try your assault case if necessary. Our top lawyers are proven winners with a reputation as excellent trial lawyers. Anytime you are facing an assault charge, your livelihood and freedom are on the line; you don’t just need a lawyer, you need the best lawyer you can get. Our top-rated lawyers will take the time to explain everything to you and your loved ones so that you can rest assured you know what is going on and that you are in experienced and capable hands.

assault case successes