should the government pay the legal fees of people who are acquitted?

[boedicca]

No. Guilty people can be left off on a technicality. It's also a slipper slope from "paying legal fees" to "paying damages for pain and suffering". Such reimbursements would be too tempting of an opportunity to engage in fraud.

 

[Immanuel]

I think they probably do include plea deals, but federal prosecutors have way too much power, and often use that power to harass people into pleading guilty. If you were told the probability of you getting convicted and getting sentenced to prison for 20+ years was close to 100% wouldn't you agree to plead guilty and pay a fine? Innocence is not a concept federal prosecutors have to deal with when they decide to go after you because it is all but impossible not to be guilty of something when they have millions of pages of federal laws and regulations to throw at you.

I sure as hell would not take the prosecutors word for that. If I were going to plead guilty to a lesser crime, I would only do so on the advice of MY attorney, not some prosecutor.

Immie

Trust me, your attorney will so advise you. He is actually required to by the legal code of ethics, even if he believes 100% that you are innocent.

Got'cha. I read your post as if you were taking the advice of the prosecutor without consulting your own attorney.

No. Guilty people can be left off on a technicality. It's also a slipper slope from "paying legal fees" to "paying damages for pain and suffering". Such reimbursements would be too tempting of an opportunity to engage in fraud.

I am still confused. Why should an innocent man or woman lose their life's savings because neither the police nor the prosecutor wanted to do their job properly?

Immie

 

[blu]

To play devil's advocate, why should the tax payers pay if the police or prosecutors mess up? Why should they pay if they don't mess up and the jury just decides not guilty?

then they should elect more responsible leaders. but to bankrupt people when they are falsely accused etc seems quite wrong.

 

[blu]

No. Guilty people can be left off on a technicality. It's also a slipper slope from "paying legal fees" to "paying damages for pain and suffering". Such reimbursements would be too tempting of an opportunity to engage in fraud.

yea thats the only issue is the fraud aspect... a defense lawyer could just 'work' 24/7 on a case and then bill the jacked up rates etc