Seattle Criminal Attorney | Bench Trial or Jury Trial?

So you have been accused of a wrong. Possibly a DUI, maybe an beating, maybe a larceny. And the state isn't giving you anything you feel at ease taking as a plea bargain. Your Seattle criminal attorney informs you the only option, if you don't want the proposition, is a trial.

You're okay with that, but are a bit cautious about the particulars. In particular, you are not certain whether you ought to ask for a jury trial or request a bench trial. Your Seattle criminal attorney is pushing for a jury trial, however you simply don't know if you can rely on a group of individuals you do not know to make the correct judgment.

Picking between a jury trial or a bench trial (where the judge makes the conclusion of your guilt or innocence) can at times be hard (even for us criminal attorneys!). Let's look at a couple of scenarios that may need you to go one way or another.

To begin with, the jury trial. You like jury trials since jurors usually are not as cynical as judges (they've heard lots of excuses over the years and begin to stop trying to tell the difference). They endeavor fiercely to do the just thing and will habitually furnish you at least a fighting opportunity. On the contrary they can be unpredictable also.

You habitually desire a jury trial when the case is fairly shaky, when you get various inconsistencies in the facts that just do not make sense, and when you want the fact finder to give you the benefit of the doubt. Juries are capable of doing this. With judges it's a little more hard.

After that, the bench trial. You commonly like to have these when you have a exceedingly technical defense, the details of the case are truly upsetting (the jury will virtually be certain to be in opposition to you from the start), or you are going to found your defense on a legal topic that you think the judge will value better than a jury. This also is a crap shoot, as judges, though not unpredictable, have a propensity to tilt in the direction of the prosecution.

In the end, the verdict to go jury trial or bench trial should possibly be completed by your Seattle criminal lawyer. They possess the practice to appreciate which one to use, and they recognize the intricacy of the verdict. No matter which you decide on, though, it's doubtless going to be an uphill struggle. Good luck!