PRE-INDICTMENT / PRE-CHARGING

Minneapolis & D.C. Criminal Defense Lawyer Representing Clients Pre-Charging and Pre-Indictment

Criminal defense lawyer Kassius Benson has successfully represented numerous individuals who were under criminal investigation in Minnesota and Washington, D.C. regarding potential charges of:

• Conspiracy to Distribute Narcotics including Methamphetamine, Cocaine, Ecstasy and Marijuana
• White Collar Criminal Offenses including Tax Fraud, Mortgage Fraud and Embezzlement
• Wire Fraud, Money Laundering and Bribery

If you have been contacted by the police or have any reason to believe that you will be facing criminal charges in Minnesota or Washington, D.C., you should immediately contact an experienced criminal defense lawyer.

Kassius Benson knows that steps can be taken to effectively represent someone pre-charging. These steps include:

• Assessing the Strengths and Weaknesses of the Potential Charges
• Attempting to Convince Prosecutor Not to File Charges
• Exploring Options to Minimize or Mitigate Potential Charges
• Planning Options and Arguments for Securing Bail and Pretrial Release
• Beginning Early Investigation Prior to Charging

If you have been contacted by police or a federal agency and believe you are the target of a criminal investigation, don’t hesitate to contact Kassius Benson Law, P.A. at (612) 333-2755.

How Can Kassius Benson Assist You Before Charges Are Filed?

Kassius Benson has successfully represented clients who are facing law enforcement or grand jury investigations.

When a defense attorney has the opportunity to represent a client prior to an indictment or the filing of charges, the client stands to benefit in many ways.  An experienced defense attorney can at times convince the government, including police and prosecutors, not to pursue charges at all.  In other circumstances, a defense lawyer experienced with criminal and grand jury investigations can influence the pre-indictment proceedings to the client’s advantage so that less serious charges are brought.

Through pre-indictment or pre-charge representation, experienced defense counsel can protect a client’s interests in such ways as the following:

• Clarify the status in the investigation – who is the target, subject, witnesses, or other persons of interest?

• Monitor the grand jury proceedings by interviewing witnesses and maintaining close contact with the prosecution

• Undertake an independent investigation of the facts that can deflect the prosecution’s interest away from the client or provide helpful evidence of innocence

• Advise about the best response to subpoenas for documents or testimony, contacts from law enforcement agents, or getting ready to testify before a grand jury

• Negotiate the turnover of documents or computer software as an alternative to an unannounced raid at a home or place of business

In our experience, pre-indictment defense during grand jury investigations can be most effective in white collar crime cases; such as fraud or corruption cases, and drug cases.  Early intervention is highly advisable in sex crimes, drug cases, tax fraud and white collar crimes, and property offenses.

What Can Be Done If You Are Being Investigated for Tax Fraud?

When an Internal Revenue Service criminal investigation agent completes an investigation and recommends that an individual be prosecuted, there are at least two stages of review by Internal Revenue Service attorneys prior to the approval of prosecution. Once the Internal Revenue Service approves prosecution at its highest level, the case is forwarded to the United States Department of Justice Tax Division in Washington, DC, where federal prosecutors specializing in criminal tax violations review the case and decide whether or not to authorize prosecution. If the Department of Justice Tax Division in Washington approves prosecution, the case is sent to the local US Attorney’s office with the direction that the individual or individuals named be indicted and prosecuted for the offenses alleged.

In tax crime cases, the multi-tiered approval process can work to your advantage. The process gives you a number of different opportunities to derail a federal criminal case before it ever gets to grand jury. At each of the IRS approval levels and at the Department of Justice Tax Division level, your lawyer will have the opportunity to schedule a conference where he or she can sit down with government attorneys and attempt to convince them to decline prosecution of the case. If the government has a strong case against you, it is unlikely that he or she will be successful in convincing either the IRS or the Department of Justice Tax Division to refrain from prosecuting.

However, if there are misunderstandings that can be explained away and the government can be convinced that there was no criminal conduct, you have the opportunity to convince the government to decline prosecution prior to grand jury. It is always less stressful to have your attorney address matters in meetings with government attorneys than to have to explain your side of the story at a federal criminal trial.

At a minimum, sound legal advice in the pre-indictment stage will help protect a client from the risk of mistakes that can result in such charges as falsification, perjury or obstruction of justice.  In many cases, even when the government can’t find enough evidence to bring the original charges, the prosecution may charge someone for making false statements during the investigation.

Contact an Experienced Criminal Defense Lawyer

If all of this sounds complicated, it is. Whether you speak, what you say and how and when you say it can have a profound effect on your future when you find yourself involved in a white-collar criminal investigation. The time to realize this, hire an experienced white-collar criminal defense attorney and develop a strategic plan, is before the feds come knocking at your door.  If you are under investigation or have been accused or convicted of a Federal or State crime, contact criminal defense attorney Kassius O. Benson and KASSIUS BENSON LAW, P.A. online.

You may also call Kassius O. Benson at 612-333-2755 in Minnesota or 202-744-2544 in Washington, D.C., or at 612-267-6972 if an urgent matter arises during the evening or weekend.  Don’t hesitate to call.  Lawyers are available 24 hours a day.