Legal Question in Criminal Law in California

Re: It's better to play guilty or non guilty at the arraignment?

You should get a lawyer. Having said that:

1. The judge cannot reduce the charges against you. The only ways to get them reduced is to persuade the prosecutor to reduce them or to go through the preliminary hearing (and perhaps even trial) in the hope that he will fail to offer enough evidence of the pending charge. That seldom happens.

2. If you plead guilty to the charges against you, there will be no reason for the prosecutor to reduce them. Such reductions are usually offered as part of a deal. If you simply accept the charges as they stand, there will be no reason for him to make a deal with you.

3. You almost certainly have no idea how to negotiate a plea deal on your own. You're like a novice poker player, and the prosecutor is a professional. More importantly, he already holds a much better hand than you do. You need a professional on your side.

4. The next most common reason for a prosecutor to reduce charges is that he realizes the evidence does not support the charges as filed. This doesn't happen very often. Prosecutors sometimes do this when an ongoing investigation or trial preparation reveals a flaw in their case. If you plead guilty, the investigation and trial preparation will stop and the prosecutor will have no reason to even consider reducing the charges.

5. If you plead guilty at your arraignment you will almost certainly *not* be allowed to change your plea later. Withdrawal of a guilty plea is only allowed in very unusual circumstances, such as if the judge fails to properly advise the defendant of his rights, if the defendant was coerced into the plea or if the prosecutor failed to live up to the terms of a plea bargain. None of these circumstances will be present if you voluntarily plead guilty the first time you go to court.

As I said at the outset, you need a lawyer. Your lawyer almost certainly won't let you plead guilty, at least not right away. She may be able to get you a vastly better result than you could hope to obtain on your own. Trying to represent yourself would likely be the biggest mistake of your life.

Re: It's better to play guilty or non guilty at the arraignment?

You never never plead guilty to anything until and unless a lawyer has thoroughly reviewed your case. You need representation and you will be making a huge mistake if you attempt to handle this matter by yourself.

Call a few private lawyers. If you cannot afford any of them, go with a public defender. Whoever ends up being your lawyer will explain the whole process to you.

Feel free to contact my office for a non-binding consultation.

Jacek W. Lentz, Esq.

310.273.1361

www.lentzlawfirm.com