When it comes to preparing for a sex crime hearing, there are several things that you need to take into your careful consideration. If you want to get your assailant punished severely for the crime they have committed, you will have to appear at the court hearing and play an important role. You will have to answer an array of questions that lawyers from both sides will ask you. If you are well prepared in advance to handle this situation, you may not be able to get compensation from the assailant or get them punished. You will obviously need the assistance of an expert criminal law attorney, but you will still have to do some preparation on your level also. Following is a brief rundown on how to prepare yourself for hearing.
Gather Information
While you are working on your strategies for preparing for a sex crime hearing, the first thing you have to do is to gather all important pieces of information together. You need to do this before you go ahead and meet a lawyer. Gather all proofs and evidences that you think might help in your case. Some common evidences may include medical reports and the photographs of the injuries caused to you because of the assault.
Relationship With The Attacker
As the statistics goes, in over 80% of the cases, the assaulter is usually someone who the victim knows and trust. If that is the case with you, you must compile all documents and evidences that can help you prove your relationship with the attacker. Your lawyer will also need all of this information in order to do their investigation and to determine the strength of your case.
Civil Vs Criminal Case
As part of the process of preparing for a sex crime hearing, you also need to determine whether you are eligible to file a civil or a criminal lawsuit against the assaulter. Criminal lawsuits can result in severe punishments (including monetary fine and/or jail imprisonment) to the assailant, for this type of lawsuit it’s especially important to have experienced criminal lawyers handling the case. On the other hand, civil lawsuits often end up awarding the victims certain amount of monetary compensation for wages lost, sufferings, and pain caused to them because of that offence.
Do A Thorough Research Before Hiring A Lawyer
Before you finally hire a criminal defense lawyer, you must do a thorough research in order to make sure that the attorney you are hiring is the best one available to handle your case. The lawyer must have specialization in this field of law. Besides that, the more experienced they are, the better it is for you. You need to be very careful particularly regarding their fees. A lawyer who is asking you to make a hefty amount of payment upfront does not make a good choice. If you are expecting to win a monetary compensation from your case, the best way is to hire an experienced sex crimes attorney who is willing to handle your case on contingent fee basis. Such lawyers do not charge any fee from you until they win the compensation for you. They often charge a certain percentage of the compensation received as their commission.
While you are preparing for a sex crime hearing, it is important for you to understand that you are going to face your attacker in the courtroom. This will help you make up your mind in advance.