Finance

Loss of Control and Awareness: Viable Court Defenses

A common saying about criminal cases is that the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty. There can be times when a case is so publicized that you can read it in the newspapers or see it on TV anywhere you go. These have a profound influence on the public, but the court is an independent thinker. Cases will undergo intense scrutiny, and the decision will never be swayed by the public or anyone else. 

It would take pieces of evidence and witness statements for the judge to come to a conclusion, so to speak. It must be heartbreaking if the defendant has to go through a tough ordeal involving public perception. It seems that even if they win the case, some people’s minds will already have a permanent view of them that is not favorable. 

If ever you or a loved one has been accused of a criminal act, you can look for companies or firms that can help you get bail bonds in Wasatch County. That way, you can go free while you await trial. Although it would cost you money, it is just right for you to have bail bonds port st joe fl since you are technically under investigation. In criminal cases, there are types of defenses that basically tell that the defendant is not in the right state of awareness when the crime happened.

Automatism

Your body has involuntary reflexes such as inhaling and exhaling. But for the most part, you get to do whatever you want. Automatism is a different beast in that your body processes still work as normal, but you can be doing something that you do not intend to do. The most popular example of this is sleepwalking. In court cases, the accused can use this as a criminal defense. This means that if you have sleepwalked out in the streets and ended up harming someone in the process, you have a good chance of avoiding punishment.

Intoxication

As the name suggests, this is where the defendant can claim that they were under the influence of an intoxicating substance when the crime was committed. This can be from alcohol or illegal substances. Another factor is if they have voluntarily or involuntarily taken the substance. The latter would make for a stronger case that favors the defendant. It could just prove that they may be coerced or controlled by someone, which led them to commit a crime.

Insanity

You can see that the ongoing theme is the loss of awareness and control. Pleading insanity is no different. There are mental disorders such as schizophrenia that takes away a person’s rationality and common sense out of the window for a moment in time. This could be a valid defense as long as it is backed up with evidence and records of the defendant’s state of mind, which should be provided by psychiatrists. 

Eyewitnesses can include people who are close to the accused and those who were present at the scene of the crime. If these statements establish a visible difference in the defendant’s way of thinking, then there is a strong chance that they can be seen as innocent.

If you are a defendant and truly believe that you are not responsible for a crime, you will be given a chance to defend yourself. That is what is admirable about laws; they give you a chance to explain even if the odds are stacked against you. This is to prevent the conviction of innocent people. Provide what is necessary to support the case and pray that the judge and the jury will see your innocence through it.