Are You Really Innocent Until Proven Guilty?

Our criminal justice system is founded on one underlying principle: all accused are innocent until they are proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. This is because the founding fathers were committed to personal, individual freedom and firmly believed that nobody’s rights should be interfered with or taken away until such time as they have shown that their removal is warranted. As a result, our justice system is one of the best, and perhaps even the best in the world for giving those accused of a crime every opportunity to fight to prove their innocence.

Arrests vs. Convictions

It’s important to note that there is a huge difference between being arrested and being convicted, and unfortunately that line tends to blur with the general population. Many serious crimes, particularly violent crimes or sex offenses, tend to have a massive stigma against them due to their ability to radically offend the public conscience.

In order for someone to be arrested for a crime, there has to be “probable cause” or a suspicion based on available evidence to suggest that the individual in question could be guilty of the crime in question. Therefore, because of this principle many people automatically assume that someone arrested for one of these serious crimes is guilty.

This is a common misconception: just because someone has been arrested doesn’t mean they have been convicted, or shown to have committed the offense in question. In fact, many people who have been arrested are later exonerated through their trial by mounting a successful defense that shows that they did not commit the crime. In order to actually convict someone, the prosecution must be able to demonstrate that the person who is accused is guilty, and even then sometimes just not having the evidence to show guilt is enough to clear someone of their charges.

Get Help with Your Defense

Even though prosecutors have an enormous burden to prove that someone is guilty, they are skilled at their job and often can use even seemingly innocuous statements to try and show that they imply an admission of guilt. Therefore, if you find yourself accused, it’s strongly advised you seek counsel from a Austin criminal defense attorney. A skilled legal advocate can match the prosecutor’s skill with well-crafted arguments of their own in order to provide you with a hard-hitting criminal defense.