What Doesn’t Work: Trying to intimidate the prosecutor or impress the judge by using legal terms you think you heard on TV: "Judge, I didn’t domestic violence no one!  I just collaterally damaged him on accident when I heretofore misappropriated my shoe to his corpus. Anyone who says different is an ignorant heresayer!"

What Works: Knowing the consequences of involving the police in a family fight.  I recently represented a woman who smashed a family picture after she found out her husband was cheating on her.  During the argument, the neighbors called the police and she was arrested for domestic violence criminal mischief (destruction of property).  She was then taken to jail, charged with a misdemeanor, and ordered to have no contact with her husband or children until the case was resolved.  She then hired me, and after several court dates, she narrowly avoided a conviction and we eventually got the charge dismissed.

Most people have no idea how serious the consequences can be for calling the police during a family fight.  Utah domestic violence laws are extremely strict.  Whenever you call the police to investigate a “domestic” situation, you unknowingly start the legal process which controls any domestic violence case handled in Utah.  If police are called to investigate a possible domestic violence report, they are required by law to determine the “predominant aggressor” in the situation.

They are then supposed to arrest the predominant aggressor for any apparent charges of domestic violence.  If they don’t arrest, they have to make a detailed report explaining why they didn’t arrest. This includes minor violations and laws that most people don’t know about (such as breaking a picture frame or not letting someone leave a room).

Once you or someone in your family is arrested, they will take you to jail, fingerprint you, and take your mug shot (which will be posted online).  You will be required to post bail and sign a no contact order before they will release you. You will not be permitted to contact the other person or go anywhere near the house to get your property.  You will have to find a hotel or somewhere else to stay until the no contact order is lifted, which can take days, weeks, or months.

When you go to court to face the domestic violence criminal charges, you will have to hire an attorney and take off work for your court dates.  Then, if you are lucky, you may be able to work out a deal to keep a conviction off your record (the mug shot and arrest record will still show up).  But you may still have to pay a fine and do domestic violence counseling (even for breaking a picture frame).   If you are unlucky, you will have a domestic violence conviction on your record, which will revoke your 2^nd amendment right to possess a gun and will show when you are looking for a job or applying for school or volunteer opportunities.  You may also have to pay a court fine, pay for 16 or more domestic violence classes, and be placed on probation.

Certainly, serious domestic violence situations require immediate police intervention, and you should never hesitate to call the police if you or someone else is in physical danger. In our experience, however, many people call the police just to diffuse the situation or because they are angry, but they don’t realize the consequences of one phone call and would have handled the situation differently if they had known.  Clients often say, “I wish I would have just gone outside to cool off instead of calling the police.”

What Doesn’t Work

What Works:  Saving lots of money by not shoplifting…especially at Walmart!  If you are caught shoplifting, you can be charged criminally and sued civilly.  If you are found guilty of misdemeanor shoplifting the standard fine is $623 on top of the cost of what was taken.  Also, if you shoplift from a large company, they will usually sue you civilly.  Most companies will make you pay $200—400 for their costs, but Walmart will usually sue for about $700 (for security equipment, personnel, and various other fees).  In some cases, people who have been caught stealing socks or underwear have been asked to pay fines and civil penalties totaling more than $1,300.

Also, if you have a shoplifting / retail theft conviction on your record it will be there for a minimum of five years, and can affect what kind of a job you can get.  If this is a first-time shoplifting /retail theft charge, you may be able to keep it off of your criminal record.  A good criminal defense attorney can tell you the best ways to do that.

What Doesn’t Work

What Works:  Don’t take legal advice from attorneys!…unless they have experience in the area of law you’re dealing with.  Most people think that if someone is an attorney, then they probably know the law.  That’s not true.  These days, most attorneys only know the law in a few specific areas.  Don’t rely on advice from an attorney unless he or she has experience in the type of law you’re dealing with.  If the attorney does civil law, don’t rely on any criminal law advice he gives you.  If you need advice on criminal law you really need to speak with a criminal attorney.  If you don’t, there is a good chance you will live to regret it.

And the winner is...

iPad: Stephanie Stolworthy Flynn
$50: Nate Shields
$50: Michael Cummings
$50: Charlotte Aldridge Petersen
$50: Andrew R. Peterson
$50: Kayleigh Sharp Ferrell
$50: Jennifer Stark Horrocks
$50: Brian Arnold
$50: Wendi Craig-Cummings
$50: Danielle Reist Dallas
$50: David Moss

Thanks to all who entered! And a sincere thanks for all of your support. We will contact the winners within 48 hours.

Contact: Ashley
Email: aburton@intermountainlegal.net
Closing date: Please email resume to aburton@intermountainlegal.net before close of business on Feb. 7th, 2012.

What Doesn’t Work

What Works:  Making sure you can pass a background check.  Most people don’t know that any time you are charged with anything criminal (ranging from speeding tickets to murder), a record of that charge becomes available online through the court system.  Even if your case is completely dismissed or you are found not guilty, there will still be a record that you were charged.

If you want your record to be completely clean, you must go through the expungement process.  Once a judge orders your record to be expunged, you can have your charges erased from all local and state government records.  The process is somewhat complicated, but you can do it yourself for about $250 or have an attorney do it for about $750.

So, in a time where jobs and promotions are hard to come by, spending some extra time to make sure your record is completely clean can make a huge difference.  If you have something you want to expunge, go to http://www.utexpungement.com/ to see if you are eligible.

What Doesn’t Work

What Works:  Before asking for a court-appointed attorney, decide whether it’s worth it.  Most people don’t know that even when the court decides you can’t afford an attorney and appoints a “free” attorney to represent you, most of the time you will still have to pay some of the attorney’s fees.  Unless the charges are completely dropped, once your case is resolved, the judge will add an additional $150 to $250 “recoupment fee” to cover the costs of the attorney you couldn’t afford to hire.

In most criminal cases, the recoupment fee is worth the extra $150, but if you are charged with any kind of minor to medium traffic violation, your $90 ticket may turn into a $240 ticket.  Even if your court-appointed attorney can get a $200 ticket cut in half, you will still end up paying $250!  The only way you can avoid paying the extra recoupment fee is by getting the case totally dismissed.

So, if you are dealing with anything that could end up on your criminal record and you can’t afford to hire a lawyer, you should almost always ask for an attorney.  But if it’s a minor traffic, littering, parking, or non-moving citation which carries a fine of less than $150-$250, you may want to reconsider asking for a “free” attorney.

What Doesn't Work

What Works: Get a second legal opinion. If you are looking for a criminal attorney, you should always call at least two attorneys to hear what they have to say. Just like with doctors, different attorneys may have different opinions on how to handle your criminal case. If you need to hire a criminal lawyer, choose one you feel you can trust to protect your freedom.

What Doesn't Work

What Works: Never driving “buzzed.”  Most people cannot tell when their own blood alcohol is above the legal limit.  If they feel okay and haven’t had many drinks, they will often decide it is okay to drive.  But even when you don’t feel drunk and you haven’t had very much to drink other factors can put you over the limit.  For example, if you weigh less than average and haven’t had anything to eat in the last couple of hours, two drinks can push your BAC over the legal limit. Also, if you feel fine when you get behind the wheel, you’re blood alcohol can continue increasing as you drive home.  Or, if you’re on certain types of medication, that can intensify the negative effects of alcohol.  So, if you have been drinking it is always best to have a designated driver or call a cab.

What Works: Don’t be naive. Put yourself in the prosecutor’s and the judge’s shoes. Ultimately, your case may come down to whether they believe your explanation. If you think you have a good excuse, ask yourself, “If someone else told me this same story, what would I think?” If you’re hesitant to believe your own story, get a good criminal defense attorney. Sometimes, even the truth can sound unbelievable. A good criminal defense attorney can help prove the truth of your story.