The penalties you could be hit with if you’re convicted

Being charged with a criminal offense can leave you on edge, unsure of what your future will bring. If you don’t adequately defend yourself, you could end up facing conviction. In that situation, you could get hit with broad, significant, and wide-ranging penalties that can reshape your life. But what, exactly, is at stake in your case?

It really depends on the crime that you’ve been accused of committing. However, let’s take a look at some of the most common penalties so that you know what you’re up against and why it’s so important to aggressively fight back against the prosecution.

Common penalties associated with criminal conviction

There are a lot of penalties that you might face if you’re convicted of a criminal offense. This includes each of the following:

• Prison time: This is most accused individuals’ primary concern. This is understandable given that a conviction can rip you away from your family and leave you behind bars for several years.
• Fines: Some criminal convictions carry fines and restitution, which can dampen your financial outlook for years or even decades to come. This can leave you on unsteady financial footing for a long time to come.
• Driver’s license suspension: A drunk driving conviction will likely lead to driver’s license suspension or revocation. This can make it hard for you to maintain your job, and it can make it difficult for you to visit family members and friends.
• Professional license issues: If you work in a career that requires a professional license, you might end up losing your license and your career upon criminal conviction. Your conviction may prevent you from reinstating your professional license, too, even years down the road.
• Housing problems: Many landlords are hesitant to lease property to someone who has been convicted of a criminal offense, especially if that offense was a felony or if it was drug-related. This can leave you with limited options and less desirable housing.
• Employment challenges: Almost every employer is going to run a criminal background check on you before offering you a job. If you have a criminal conviction in your history that’s related to the job, you’re going to be at a disadvantage in the job market. This can directly affect your financial stability which, in turn, can impact nearly every other aspect of your life.
• Child custody issues: If you have custody of your child or visitation with them through a divorce or paternity case, your criminal conviction might be used against you to restrict or even completely cut off time with your child. While you’ll have the opportunity to contest such a request in court, you’ll be in a difficult position going into that hearing with a criminal conviction in your past.
• Immigration status: If you have immigration status in the United States, a criminal conviction could leave you in a predicament where you might be denied a visa renewal or you might even face deportation. Therefore, your future in this country could be in jeopardy.

We don’t raise all of these consequences to scare you. Instead, we want you to see the importance of crafting an aggressive criminal defense strategy that protects you as fully as possible.

Aggressively fight to insulate your interests

As you can see, there’s a lot on the line in your case. If you don’t put forth the best criminal defense possible under the circumstances, you might end up with a disastrous outcome that impacts your future for decades to come.

Therefore, now is the time to start thinking about how you can build the strong legal arguments that you need on your side. By educating yourself and seeking out the support that you need, you might be able to beat the prosecution and protect your future.