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Premier Criminal Defense Lawyers in Peterborough, Ontario



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Moldaver & McFadden
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MOLDAVER & MCFADDEN

We are the Premier Criminal Defense Attorneys in the Peterborough, Ontario
region. Established in XXXX by Joel Moldaver and David McFadden, joined by
Trevor Burgis in XXXX, and by Justin Janzen in XXXX.

With wide experience in youth and adult courts we routinely represent people
charged in criminal matters at the courts in Peterborough, Lindsay, and Cobourg.
We have conducted some of the most complex criminal trials in the region, and
are routinely called upon to defend those accused of some of the most serious
crimes including homicide, manslaughter, serious assaults, drug trafficking, and
human trafficking. We are also in various courtrooms daily for bail hearings
(including “show cause” hearings), bail reviews, and all manner of more routine
criminal court matters such as failure to appear and breach of probation.


THERE IS NO “MINOR” CRIMINAL CHARGE WHEN CONSIDERING YOUR FUTURE (OR THE
PRESENT) …

Even if your case is “minor” or routine, the fact is that all criminal charges
in Canada are to be taken very seriously. Many seemingly minor criminal charges
can have the potential for significant jail or prison time. Your freedoms, your
ability to work, whether you can travel, where you can live, who you can live
with can all be seriously impacted for months or years, in some cases, even if
you are ultimately found not guilty. The damage will have already been done.
There is no compensation for losing your job or home, nor for the damage caused
by the criminal accusations against you. It is crucial that you are represented
by an experienced criminal defense lawyer ideally from the moment police arrest
or detain you, when they are required to advise you of your “right to not answer
any questions,” your “right to be informed” and your “right to counsel.”


THINKING OF A QUICK GUILTY PLEA TO “GET IT OVER WITH” OR GET OUT OF JAIL SOONER?

Think very carefully. There’s a saying you may be familiar with, “A man who is
his own lawyer has a fool for a client.” The same sentiment would apply equally
to anyone who has a jailhouse lawyer for his lawyer: A jailhouse lawyer is an
inmate, who invariably has never graduated from or even attended law school, who
has gained sometimes significant experience within the criminal justice system
as a result of his own criminal travails, and who gives advice to other inmates
on how to handle their legal case. They may give you all kinds of advice, and
some of it will sound very reasonable to you. The problem, or one of them, is
that what worked for your jailhouse lawyer and other inmates may not work in
your case, or there may be a better option. Never plead guilty to any criminal
charge without first speaking to a lawyer at Moldaver & McFadden.

It may be that your experienced criminal defense attorney will advise you to
plead guilty, but that will only be after a careful review of your case,
consideration of all legal options available, and often sentencing and other
negotiations with the prosecuting Crown Attorney.

It would indeed be a foolish thing to just plead guilty to get it over with and
have a criminal record that will impact your life for years to come, possibly
the rest of your life, only to later find out that a different choice would have
spared you a lot of grief. It is understandable, though, that after a few weeks
or months in jail someone might decide to plead guilty in order to be released
that same day, with a sentence of time served. It’s difficult during a very
stressful time in jail to think about the future. The only future you want is to
be out of there. No one could hold that against you. However, a poorly planned
or rushed guilty plea can have potentially devastating long-term consequence
that you may not have considered or even be aware of. A few more weeks or months
in jail is a big and seemingly impossible ask, but the reward can be a future
unencumbered, or even the Crown suddenly withdrawing the charge (for a number of
reasons), or a not guilty verdict that you never thought your lawyer could
obtain. Again, only an experienced criminal defense lawyer can guide you in this
regard. No, your lawyer can’t give you a guarantee, but they know what they are
doing, they know the criminal justice system, they know the other parties (the
Crown Attorneys, the judges), and they know how to get the best outcome for you
in your specific case.


WHAT TO DO IF YOU ARE DETAINED OR ARRESTED BY POLICE?

At that point you should tell the police that you refuse to answer any
questions, and that you wish to speak with a lawyer at Moldaver & McFadden. Keep
in mind that in order to arrest you police must have probable cause to do so
(they either saw you commit an offense or their investigation, even if seemingly
short, has provided them with sufficient evidence to satisfy them that you
committed a criminal offense) and at that point police cannot un-arrest you, so
no beneficial purpose is served by answering any questions or indeed making any
comments or statements of any kind to the police, or anyone else other than your
lawyer, about the matter.

Far too many people think that they can talk themselves out of an arrest. You
cannot. What you can do, however, is talk yourself into additional criminal
charges, onerous bail conditions, bail refusal (you could be held in jail
awaiting trial), or ultimately a conviction. Even if you know you are guilty of
the offense you were charged with, and even if there’s seemingly overwhelming
evidence against you, your telling the police that you refuse to answer any
questions and that you want to speak with a lawyer at Moldaver & McFadden, and
your subsequent remaining silent on the matter, may provide your lawyer with
important, indeed golden opportunities throughout every stage from gaining your
release pending trial, a variety of pre-trial procedures, possible dismissal or
downgrading of the charge(s), whether certain charges proceed summarily or by
indictment (a conviction on one may mean no jail time, the other may mean a
prison sentence), or ultimately a not guilty finding at trial. Even if you are
ultimately found guilty at trial your having remained silent many months
earlier, when you were first arrested or detained by police, may give your
lawyer an opportunity to make Charter of Rights arguments to the sentencing
court, or to file an appeal that may otherwise not have been available to you
had you not exercised your right to silence.




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