Colorado Criminal Defense Attorney Must Explain Plea Offers

Recently, the Supreme Court heard a case concerning a person's right to hear all plea offers that the prosecutor makes. The case involved a person from Missouri who was charged with driving on a revoked license and had been convicted of the same offense three times before. In this particular case, the prosecutor had made a plea offer to the defendant's attorney but the attorney never told the client about the offer. The plea offer had a deadline which passed. Later, the defendant accepted a plea with worse terms than the original offer.

The issue before the court was whether a criminal defense attorney has to tell the defendant about each plea offer that the prosecutor makes. The Supreme Court was very clear about this issue and said that the defense attorney must convey every offer to the defendant because the offers are a critical stage of the trial process. Likewise, the Supreme Court determined whether failure to give a plea offer is ineffective assistance of counsel. The court uses a test to determine whether there has been ineffective-assistance of counsel. First, the court determined whether the attorneys' performance was deficient and the second issue is whether the deficiency caused prejudice in the case. Both appeared to be present in this case so the defendant received a new trial.


This case highlights the importance of communication between a lawyer and the defendant. It is essential in a criminal case to always maintain good communication with your client. Additionally, the communication should be open and honest and a good attorney needs to make sure that his client understands every part of the trial process as well as the decisions that are being made. Also, this case highlights the importance of letting your client know all of his options.

Good attorneys have well informed clients. Not because the client is researching the case or smarter than other clients but because good attorneys make an effort to make sure that their clients are well-informed. If you are facing criminal charges in Colorado, it is important that you have the best somekeyword available to you. Having the Best Defense Attorney available to you will allow you to be better prepared and ready for your criminal case.

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