Post-Conviction Relief

There is almost nothing as frightening as answering to a criminal charge. This is especially the case for defendants facing the full wrath of the system, with all the odds stacked up against them. But while facing the trial is difficult, dealing with the news that you have been convicted is much harder. For even defendants with the best and most dedicated of counsel, it can feel a bit like trying to pull the fat out of the fire at this stage. Despite this, you should know that the journey is not over, even at that stage. With specialist help, it is possible to fight a criminal conviction in several ways, including by challenging the sentence or even getting the conviction overturned. At National Legal Professional Associates (NLPA), this is exactly the kind of specialized help we provide to defendants and their counsel. For more than 25 years, we have actively assisted defendants through their lawyers, providing crucial research and preparing legal briefs that have gotten hundreds off the hook. From pre-trial to post-conviction relief, we have demonstrated time and again that criminal charges, convictions and sentences can be defeated, with the right team. We can confidently say that our team can provide the crucial difference that secures your freedom.

The criminal law can be very harsh

At NLPA, we have seen enough criminal charges and convictions to know that the criminal law can be very harsh. In our experience, even seemingly straightforward cases hold the very real threat of conviction and incarceration for long periods. With more finely-balanced cases, the threat is only worse. This is because when facing a criminal charge, the defendant has to fight a battle on three fronts. A defendant has to contend with:

• The heavy hand of the law, which in its black and white letters portend serious consequences in the event of a finding of guilt;
• The apathy of the judge, which unfortunately exists due to the thousands of cases that they have to deal with; and
• The doggedness of the prosecution, with its drive to secure conviction and punishment, almost at any cost and often at the detriment of the defendant.

Although judges try their best to be fair, they can become inured to the whole process because they think they have seen it all. Due to this, the judge may unconsciously judge the defendant based on set stereotypes or prejudices. The prosecution can often get overly enthusiastic and in their drive to prop up their “conviction statistics”, may operate just within the bounds of the law. These factors taken together can make prosecutions for serious offenses extremely difficult. But things only get more difficult in the event of conviction. Once a pronouncement of guilt has been made by a court, all the other courts tend to treat the defendant as a convict. Fighting from this position can be hard, especially when there are many extenuating circumstances involved. However, as we have seen time and again, it is possible to pull the fat from the fire, even after guilt has been pronounced. We have made it a specialty of ours to dig deep and find the resources that provide the turning point a defendant needs to establish innocence, reduce the sentence or get the conviction overturned.

We can help you fight back

At NLPA, we provide legal advice to assist defendants and their defense teams in a wide variety of areas. We particularly excel at going over the facts of the case with a fine comb and carrying out research that will provide the trump card in the criminal proceedings. We believe that everybody deserves the chance of a fair legal defense backed by towering legal authorities and resources. For the vast majority of our clients, we are not just providing a service that fills a need for outsourced legal research, we provide specialist advice that makes the difference. We have more than 25 years’ experience in helping defendants that have the weight of the law against them. No matter how difficult the case seems, no matter how weighted the facts seem to be against the defendant, we have a solid track record of delivering results. We provide legal and research consulting services to a range of law firms including solo law practices, large law firms, and firms that are temporarily under-staffed. We also provide legal research services to defendants who, for finance purposes, are unable to hire a full-time lawyer. We can help you fight your case, even though you have been convicted. We can provide relief in the following areas:

• Case evaluation: One of the first areas in which we provide post-conviction relief is in preparing a case evaluation that outlines the issues on appeal. This service includes outlining the facts that will be crucial to your case and what legal issues should form the backbone of your post-conviction motions. We assist in preparing these post-conviction motions to emphasize issues favorable to your appeal, drawing on our deep experience.
• Plea negotiations: Although you may have agreed to a plea bargain, you should know the case is not over. Most people think that after accepting a plea bargain, you must also accept the sentence and nothing can be done about it. However, there are many other factors that we can influence in your favor to petition for a lower sentence. We can review a wide variety of downward departures, mitigating factors and alternative sentencing programs that can reduce your potential sentence.
• Appeal assistance: Regardless of what stage your case has reached in the appeal process, our research staff can make the difference. We keenly understand the procedure in the various levels of criminal appeal courts and know what to expect. No matter which of these courts you are required to appear in, we are dedicated to finding the best arguments on your behalf and ensuring that no stone is left unturned in your defense.
• Paralegal services: We have provided research services to and completed projects for law firms from all over the US. In this time, we have addressed practically every issue involved in post-conviction matters and most, twice over. All our work is prepared by licensed attorneys who have been trained at the best US law schools. With the wealth of experience and expertise we provide, NLPA will be the best partner you can possibly want on your side of the bar.

For us, your case is never closed

Although many defendants believe that conviction pretty much spells the end of their case, we take a different view. We have literally made it our job to explore, study and understand all the aspects in which a case can be won, at the pre-trial, trial and post-conviction stage. For us, no case is really over until all possible options have been exhausted. With our knowledge and expertise, we can find the strongest factors that can help your case and assist your attorney in bending them to your favor. If you have been sentenced and do not know how to proceed from there, NLPA can help your counsel prepare a thoroughly researched appeal. We can help you research and build a carefully crafted post-conviction motion to reduce your sentence or, if applicable, overturn the conviction. Contact us today to get more information about how we can help in your situation.