If you are accused of a crime, you have a number of rights. One of them is the right to an attorney. If you have seen lawyer movies, you know that you also have a right "to remain silent." Any Denver criminal defense lawyer will also tell you this right has two parts. Basically, you don't have to talk to the police. You also don't have to talk in court. Of course, it's your choice to exercise this right, and with your consent, the police may interrogate you. Any defendant should consult a Denver criminal defense lawyer before deciding whether to speak to the police or testify in court.
Another thing that makes this right more complicated is statements to other people. If you go tell your friends or relatives about your case, they can be subpoenaed to testify about what you told them. But isn't this out of court statements that are being introduced to prove what was stated? That's the definition of hearsay, right? Yes, it is hearsay. However, it is still allowed as evidence to prove your guilt. That's because incriminating statements are allowed. The reason for this is that you would not make a statement that proved your guilt just for fun, would you? You wouldn't lie and say "I'm guilty?" Maybe if you were under threat from the mob or something, but why wouldn't they keep threatening you and make you say it at trial? The result is, you should only talk to you Denver criminal defense lawyer and nobody else about your case.
In a total reverse of the above right, defendants also have the right to testify in their own favor.
You can speak in your own defense. However, a lot of times a defendant will not want to do this. That's because prosecutors are good at cross-examining defendants to make them look guilty. If the defendant gets crossed up and mis-speaks, it may look like a lie. Therefore, even if he's not guilty, a lot of times the accused will not testify.
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