Virginia court testimony is a major endeavor, says Fairfax criminal lawyer

Virginia court testimony by the accused is far from child’s play. As a Fairfax criminal lawyer, I know the importance for your Virginia criminal lawyer fully to prepare you to testify. It is folly to think that if you are innocent and simply testify honestly, that you do not need to prepare to be on the witness stand at your trial or pretrial hearing. Yes, you must testify honestly, and you must be your best honest self you can be on the witness stand, not only in terms of what you say, but how you say it, together with bodily actions, body language, and even the way you dress and groom for court. When you interview potential Virginia DUI and criminal lawyers, ask them what they will do to prepare you for court and to testify in the event you opt to waive your Fifth Amendment right as a criminal defendant to decline to talk in court and for your silence not to be held against you.

Your only obligation with your Virginia court testimony is to honor your oath to tell the truth and only to answer the questions posed

Early in my criminal defense career, I waited for my case to be called, and watched in horror as the accused testified under the prosecutor’s questioning, while the defendant twisted in the wind, grasped for verbal straws, and numerous times after each of his answers uttered an uncomfortably-sounding gutteral MMMMMMMMMM as he twisted around his hands. My own client’s case being of my overarching concern, I do not recall the outcome of this man’s case, and do not know what he was charged with. I do know that this was painful for me to watch. I had no idea about the extent to which such uncomfortable testifying came out of being guilty, knowing about a slim chance of winning, simply being very nervous and maybe even downright terrified, being unprepared, Take this as a lesson for what not to do with your own Virginia court testimony.

What is the connection between my testifying in court and choosing the right lawyer?

The vast majority of lawyers rarely if ever enter a courtroom, and and even smaller percentage actually take cases to trial. Just as you would not want to undergo major surgery by a physician who is operating for the first time (at least not without teaming with a seasoned surgeon), having your trial with a neophyte criminal trial lawyer means that no amount of pretrial preparation is going to mean that surprises will not arise that the lawyer does not know how to handle, in that no replacement exists for simply doing when it comes to criminal defense at trial. Similarly, if you have never testified in court before, you need your Virginia criminal lawyer to sufficiently and fully prepare you for possible testimony, to include addressing possible landmines and pitfalls along the way. Beware if your lawyer tells you that your testimony does not need to be prepared out of the lawyer’s expectation that you will not be testifying. The corollary to that is that a Virginia criminal defendant may decide not to testify only because their attorney did not prepare them to do so. Your Virginia court testimony needs to be well prepared.

Realness tends to trump elegance in presenting believable and persuasive testimony

One of the nation’s best criminal defense lawyers lives frugally, including with his clothes, often repairing his suits with tape and staples. Yet, his greatness shines and transcends beyond his inelegant clothes (save for his extensive necktie collection). Do not risk whether you will get away with the same. If you do not have sufficient clothes for court, buy or borrow them. Ask your Virginia criminal lawyer for advice about what to wear and how to groom yourself for court. You want your words to be paid attention to, not your clothes. Nonetheless, realness carries the day much more than elegance with Virginia court testimony. I underline to my clients to be their real selves in court, so long as they are their best real selves.

Has your potential Virginia criminal lawyer participated in an intensive trial program by the Trial Lawyers College,  National Criminal Defense College, or the like?

The nation’s best intensive days-long programs for criminal defense lawyers are the Trial Lawyers College — which I attended for an entire month — and the National Criminal Defense College’s Trial Practice Institute, which I attended for an entire two weeks. When I attended, the competition to be accepted to each program was fierce. To this day, I continue several times each year (at the very least) to join with fellow Trial Lawyers College alums and others to fully throw our full selves into finding the best road for as much victory as possible for one of my cases and for other attendees’ cases, sometimes with my clients joining me to these gatherings, to raise their testimony quality by quantum levels. The key for a great Virginia criminal lawyer is not whether s/he has attended one of these programs, but whether they have similar experience and devotion. In the end, the key is to obtain as much victory as possible.

Fairfax criminal lawyer Jonathan Katz relentlessly pursues your best defense against Virginia DUI, felony and misdemeanor prosecutions. Call 703-383-1100 for your free initial completely confidential consultation with Jon Katz.