With most crimes, a convicted individual goes to jail, pays his fees, completes community service, and then, having paid his debt, is able to move on with his life. Sex crimes are different. Despite having already served time and made amends for wrongdoings, people accused of sex crimes are placed on a sex offender registry that essentially exposes them to lifetime consequences for acts that may have happened many years past.

If you have been accused of a sex crime or any crime that was sexually motivated, you may face conviction and a lifetime registry on the Wisconsin sex offender’s list. Taking the charges against you seriously is essential for putting together an effective defense strategy. Read through this list to discover whether you are at risk of permanent sex offender registration and then contact a Wisconsin criminal defense attorney right away.

Will I Have to Register as a Sex Offender in Wisconsin?

Certain crimes always require registration on the sex offender’s list, but others - such as battery, stalking, false imprisonment, criminal trespassing, or solicitation, just to name a few - may also require registration if the motivation is determined to have been sexual in nature.

People get traffic tickets all the time, and usually, they just pay them without thinking carefully about how the consequences of a ticket on their record could affect them in the future. But if this happens to you, it is often worth your while to think twice before simply paying the ticket; first, because you might be surprised by how easy it is to fight and beat a traffic violation; and second, because the consequences of a violation on your record may be more serious than you think. If you have been charged with a traffic violation, talk to a Wisconsin traffic violation attorney before using your hard-earned money to pay that ticket. Here are four good reasons why you should contest a traffic violation.

You May Be Able to Get a Better Deal

Depending on the seriousness of the charges against you, you may want to explore options like pleading to a lesser offense. For example, reckless driving is not set at a certain speed in Wisconsin; rather, if an officer subjectively believes you were driving dangerously given the conditions, you could face serious fees and even prison time. Contesting a ticket may allow you to plead to a lesser offense or get the charges dropped altogether.

Discover a Lack of Evidence

If you dispute a traffic violation in court, the police officer who gave you the ticket needs to appear and prove that you are guilty of the charges against you. However, the officer may not be able to prove that any evidence existed; furthermore, the officer may not even appear in the initial court hearing, which may give you the chance to speak with a prosecutor and get a deal or dismissal.

Many people who are accused of crimes wonder whether they can represent themselves in court. There are many reasons for this, including a lack of the ability to pay for a criminal defense attorney, a lack of trust in the public defenders, or a desire to rely on one’s own independence and understanding of the law. While any of these options may be tempting, ultimately representing yourself in a criminal case is a seriously risky endeavor. If you are considering being your own defense attorney, read this before you make the decision to represent yourself and go to court, potentially negatively impacting your life for many years.

Am I Qualified to Represent Myself in Criminal Court?

The Constitution of the United States of America protects every American citizen’s right to represent themselves in court. However, the Constitution recognizes that this is such a difficult endeavor that it also protects each person’s right to have a public defender appointed to them if they cannot pay for one themselves. Furthermore, a judge is required to make sure that a defendant is intellectually competent of understanding what it means to represent themselves, including the ability to read and understand the law.

So, while you may technically be allowed by the Constitution to defend yourself, you may not truly be able to do so in a way that protects you from the serious risks of self-defense. These include, but are not limited to:

After going through a criminal trial and hearing the jury return a guilty verdict, discouraged is usually not strong enough of a word to describe how a convicted person feels. Unfortunately, however, the justice system is not perfect, and every year there are people convicted for crimes they did not commit or which are based on shoddy, manipulated evidence. Other times, a criminal defense attorney may have been working for the state and have had such a large number of cases that he or she was not able to provide the defendant with the competent defense they deserved. Whatever the reason, the appeals process for a wrongful conviction is an essential part of the criminal justice system and a Wisconsin criminal appeals lawyer can help you determine whether an appeal is right for you or your loved one.

The Right to Appeal

If your sentence resulted from a guilty plea or a plea bargain, you usually will not have the right to appeal. Appeals can be requested for criminal cases involving a guilty conviction by a judge or jury, but an attorney must submit a request for appeal to a Wisconsin appellate court. The appellate court could do any of the following:

• Send the case back to court
• Reverse the conviction
• Change the sentence
• Deny the request for an appeal

What the appellate court does will depend on the circumstances of the case and the argument made by the attorney submitting the appeal.

People who are accused of crimes very often feel threatened by police, investigators, and prosecutors who are eager to secure a conviction and who may not necessarily care whether the person they are accusing is, in fact, responsible for the crime. Investigators may try to pressure someone into answering questions without their attorney present, and prosecutors may give the impression that they have enough evidence to secure a conviction, whether they really do or not.

That being said, when the evidence suggesting the accused is guilty is overwhelming, especially if the accused has a long criminal history, taking a plea bargain can be a good way to minimize fines, time in jail, and the charges that will go on his record. The only way to know for sure whether taking a plea deal is a good idea is by first meeting with an experienced Wisconsin criminal defense attorney.

What Are the Benefits of Taking a Plea Bargain?

Most people who take a plea bargain do it because they get a less severe sentence and a lighter charge. For example, if you have been accused of transporting drugs across state lines with the intent to distribute, which is a potential felony, you may be able to get the charges reduced to misdemeanor possession. You may also be able to save money on the cost of hiring legal representation throughout the course of a criminal trial.