Legal Question in Criminal Law in Minnesota

Re: overdose

This is a very serious question, and before saying too much, I must strongly discourage you from posting any further questions on the internet (even at this site) that may, even inadvertently, tend to identify you or reveal facts about a current or pending charge. Anything you report over a site like this is public, and in the wrong hands, could be used in some manner against you. So once again, be very cautious. If you decide to contact me or any of my colleagues, I would strongly encourage you to do so by phone, and not by email, or through subsequent postings to this or other sites.

To answer you basic question, yes you can certainly be charged, and from the nature of the question, I assume your friend died.

You must understand that felony cases are charged out by the county attorney in the county where the crime is alleged to have taken place. The county attorney charges out a case based on facts gathered from city police, the county sheriff, or other law enforcement officers. Although they will certainly consider "mitigating" facts (that is, things that suggest you are innocent, like your own statements), they do not act like a jury and try to determine, once and for all, the guilt or innocence of the person they charge. They obviously will not charge someone they think is not involved in a crime, but if there is some doubt, they may err on the side of charging you, and let a jury sort out the facts after a trial. And remember, just because you tell them what happened, does not mean they will believe you. For this reason, you must not make statements to anyone about the case, even if you think the statements will help you, without consulting an attorney.

You need to speak privately with an attorney at the earliest opportunity. In the meantime, you should not provide any statements to the police, the sheriff, the prosecutor, or anyone else. If you have any questions about the instructions or information contained in this message, or in the postings from my other colleagues, then promptly contact me or another lawyer as soon as possible. My contact information is below.

Re: overdose

If police find what they view as facts giving reason to suspect you of a crime, they could question you, arrest you, and refer the case to the prosecutor's office for charging a crime. In the majority of cases, the accused is charged after giving a statement to police. It is never a good idea to talk to police, without your lawyer present. This is even more true when you are innocent, since police tend to ignore facts leading to an innocence inference, and instead tend to infer guilt whenever possible. This is why so many innocent people are charged with crimes they did not commit. The best defense is to say nothig to police except "I have nothing to say. I want my lawyer." It is also best to avoid consenting to any searches (if they have a warrant or otherwise will do it anyway -- don't consent, keep the burden on them).

Re: overdose

Thank you for the post.

If law enforcement believes you harmed your boyfriend, it is certainly possible that you could be charged with an offense. You should consult with an attorney immediately and make no further statements to law enforcement or anyone else until you do.

Call for a consultation 612.240.8005 or visit criminal-law.tv

Re: overdose

As the first post indicates, you should not talk to law enforcement without first consulting an attorney. From the information in your question I would suggest talking to an attorney immediately.