Facing white-collar crime charges can be a frustrating experience. Depending on the circumstances, they can change your life forever, especially if the court finds you guilty of the said crimes. Unlike other criminal offenses, white-collar crimes refer to a whole range of business and financial-related crimes that aren’t motivated by physical force and violence. Instead, they involve the use of deception to obtain financial gain. Some common examples of these crimes can include bribery, embezzlement, fraud, money laundering, and many more.

Moreover, if you’re charged with white-collar criminal offenses, you need to take them seriously as they’re one of the different types of crimes with severe punishment and consequences. These can include hefty fines, prison sentences, forfeiture of assets, restitution, and many more. Luckily, there are defence strategies that can be used to protect your rights against white-collar crimes.

Thus, if you’re dealing with white-collar crime charges, below are the three ways to defend yourself and get your normal life back:

1. Seek Legal Representation 

Unless you’re an expert in criminal law, you may need to seek legal representation to defend yourself against your white-collar crime charges. For example, suppose you’ve been charged with these criminal offenses in Sheffield or wherever you may be located. In that case, experienced criminal defence solicitors may provide you with valuable advice and assistance throughout the legal process. They offer the support you need from the investigation to the prosecution of your offenses to ensure you get the best possible outcome.  

However, to better understand how these professionals work and help, you may check out https://www.thejohnsonpartnership.co.uk/criminal-solicitors-sheffield for more valuable information.

2. Take Advantage Of Some Defence Strategies

Now that you have a professional at your side, it may be time to make use of some defence strategies to increase your chances of getting your charges dismissed or sentence reduced. Most legal experts specializing in handling white-collar crimes may use defence strategies such as: 

• Lack Of Intent

For a conviction of white-collar criminal offenses to prosper, the prosecution may need to show that you committed the crime and intended to achieve the consequences. However, if you believe the act was unintentional, you may raise the lack of intent as a defence. For example, if you were charged with tax fraud by making an enormous mistake on your tax filing, you may refute the charges by claiming an unintentional error.

• Duress

Another way to defend yourself against white-collar crime charges is to allege the existence of pressure. But before you may take advantage of this legitimate defence, specific requirements may need to be met. For instance, you may have to demonstrate that there was a threat of immediate harm if you didn’t commit the crime. 

Also, you may need to show that the harm being threatened against you was more significant than the harm caused by the crime itself. Once you’re able to prove duress, you may be able to negotiate a lighter sentence or dismissal to the judge, depending on the circumstances and type of crime committed.

• Entrapment

You may also defend yourself from white-collar crime charges by raising the defence of entrapment. Generally, entrapment happens when a government official entices you to commit a criminal offense that you wouldn’t do on your own. Thus, if you believe you were a victim of entrapment, you may use this defence to improve your odds of winning the case.

• Intoxication

In some cases, you may use intoxication as a defence by showing that you were intoxicated when the crime was committed. You may assert that you weren’t in full control of your actions, which is why the crime happened. This means without intoxication, the offense wouldn’t have been committed. Depending on the circumstances, you may also use it as a complete defence or a way to negotiate a lesser offense or sentence.

3. Use Plea Bargaining

Apart from the common defence strategies mentioned above, you may also defend against your white-collar crime charges by entering into plea agreements. This is usually beneficial if the evidence against you is so overwhelming that you may be convicted of the said crimes if you fail to plea bargain. During the arraignment, you may plead guilty to lesser charges in exchange for a lighter sentence. Moreover, plea bargaining may help you avoid lengthy and time-consuming trial proceedings.

Takeaway

White-collar crimes can be serious offenses. Again, if you’re convicted, you may have to deal with serious penalties. Although these crimes are considered non-violent crimes, they can also become complicated and less straightforward.

Therefore, it’s best to keep these ways in mind if you want to get out of this legal trouble as soon as possible. In doing so, you can have a better idea of how to defend yourself against the charges. However, it’s also important to note that your situation may be different from others. As such, you may consider work with someone who specializes in handling criminal offenses to help you obtain a more favourable outcome in the long run.