When you’re facing federal criminal charges, prosecutors are going to pounce on incriminating physical evidence and witness testimony. If you leave that evidence unchecked, then a jury may find you guilty of the offense with which you’ve been charged. However, one way to dampen the strength of the prosecution’s case is to depose their witnesses.
How depositions could help your federal criminal case
Depositions, the process of taking sworn testimony outside of court and before trial, can be a powerful tool. Depending on the facts of your case, they may allow you to do the following:
- File a motion in limine to block a witness from testifying against you when they fail to appear at a deposition despite being subpoenaed to do so.
- Discover what information a witness possesses and how they came to know it.
- Pin them down on their testimony so that you can highlight any inconsistent statements that they’ve made.
- Gather information about the witness’s background and history, which you might be able to use to attack their credibility at trial.
While a strong deposition can be a strong weapon that gives you an edge at trial, it’s only as effective as you are in preparing and carrying out the deposition. So, before engaging in this process, make sure you understand it and how to utilize it to your advantage.
Leave no stone unturned in your federal criminal defense
With your future on the line, you need to craft an aggressive and persuasive criminal defense strategy. Your tactics also need to be well thought out and comprehensive. Otherwise, you could miss key defense opportunities.
If you’re ready to start building your federal criminal defense, then now is the time to get to work learning as much as you can about the process.