Animosity towards Lawyers

[TXTing]

Another question....

I've been reading through many of the threads here and I've repeatedly seen negative comments about lawyers ranging from "don't care for them" to "should be shot on the spot".

I realize that lawyers are disliked by many people, but do you think that LEOs IN GENERAL tend to detest them even more?

And if so, are LEOs mostly irritated with criminal defense lawyers or just all lawyers in general? I can see how as a LEO one would have real issues with defense attorneys helping criminals out that they had previosuly arrested/charged.

The reason I'm asking -- other than simple curiosity -- is that I've been taking some paralegal classes at a community college (my main course of study is mathematics at a 4-year school) and I'm close to getting my certificate and could then get my A.A.S. I've also been thinking about going to Law School.

My ultimate goal is to get into law enforcement though and I'm just wondering if a paralegal degree or even a J.D. would be asking for trouble in a LE environment?

I just have this (probably silly) picture in my head of people hating me just for having studied "the devil's trade". [And there are so many other reasons to hate me for...:D]

Common sense tells me that it wouldn't matter at all, but I thought I'd ask anyway...

Thanks!

[Cat_Doc]

We have an adversarial justice system, so it is quite natural for someone to get butt-hurt at an aggressive defense attorney.

Over the years, however, I have learned not to take things personal, the attorneys are just doing their job.

What some of these "battles" have done is to make me better at my job. I now review reports before submission pretending I am a defense attorney and looking for areas to attack. If I see them, I address them or have them addressed by the case officer before the report goes for prosecution review. This strategy has worked, jerking the rug out from under the defense and usually resulting in a lot of pleas that never go to trial. I have also had heated “chess games” on the stand, only to drink a beer with the attorney the following weekend. It is not personal, it is the job.

Besides that, I sleep good at night with no lingering thoughts that I might have helped prosecute an innocent party. I will check their alibis, I will investigate exculpatory items, and I always follow the facts, striving to avoid narrow focus at all times. I try to prove they are innocent, in a sense. If I can't do that, then I know I have the right defendant.

Some lawyers are arrogant pricks, but so are some cops. It is a human frailty.

Additonally, and back in line with your post, nobody is going to give you a hard time because you took some law courses. They will give you a hard time if you present a criminal hugging leftist attitude, though.

[retdetsgt]

Good defense lawyers are as important as good prosecutors. All defense attorneys have ever done to me is make me do a better job next time. When they've made me look bad on the witness stand, it's been my fault, not theirs.

People can complain about them, but if I need one, you can bet I'm going to hire the meanest, dirtiest lawyer I can find.

[kels]

Good defense lawyers .

OXYMORON alert, there isnt any such animal:rolleyes::D

[phantasm]

Most of our criminal cases plea out, so I don't have contact with the defense attorneys. In traffic court I beat the lawyers all the time, and of course they attack my testimony, but we're friendly to each other outside of testifying. They need us, for without us writing tickets, they won't get hired.

[pac201]

I have a couple of friends that hold JD's. Both are cops, great guys, and yes they do make you do a better job.

[basher52]

Lawyers are # 2 on my top hated list. They are second only to car salesman.

[SnapShawt]

They make me do a better job. I do exactly what CatDoc does - I write every report and scrutinize it from a defense point of view before submitting it. Conducting our investigations and writing our reports through the eyes of the defense helps us make sure that the defendant will either have to plea or just take what the prosecutor gives because he has no hope at trial.

I have great friends who are defense attorneys. They simply have a job to do. I'm glad we live in a free country where people have the right to defend themselves rigorously and those of us responsible for investigating and prosecuting them are held to high standards.

I simply do the best job that I can do and make sure there are no loose ends where my involvement in a case is concerned. If the prosecution drops the ball, that's on them. If a result comes about that is less than what I would expect "in the interest of justice and rehabilitation", then them's the breaks as they say. I don't take anything personally in this job, otherwise I'd go nuts.

[Group9]

I look at a good criminal defense attorney the same way as I look at a mafia assassin. By that, I mean, I can admire their technical skills, and I can accept that there wouldn't be any of them around unless there was a demand for their services by people, but I still don't want to hang out with them.

[Roger Dat]

One of the most hated lawyers in my area just happens to be an incompetant ADA

[TXTing]

Thanks so much everyone for the replies!

Well, I'm sure glad that you weren't too hard on all lawyers since my dad is one. Not a criminal defense attorney though or I could see some real family tension in the future... He does intellectual property law, so he's among one of the lesser-hated varieties...

I really like the idea of a capable defense attorney actually making you a better cop/witness. It's like a chess game -- you just have to anticipate their moves and plan accordingly. Must be satisfying when you beat them at their own game. And more importantly, you can sleep at night. I'm not sure that can be said of all defense attorneys...

[Samuel]

I agree that criminal defense attorneys provide a "needed service". I do not necessarily agree that I should be forced to do a "better job" because of them. I have a real problem (i.e. it pisses me off to no end) with scumbag defense attorneys trying to get positively dirty (especially previously convicted) POS's off on technicalities or for any other reason. IMO, when it is obvious that a client is guilty, the lawyer's job is to perhaps lobby for reduced punishment - not to try for "scot free" with every dirty trick in the book. I also have that same problem when absolutely idiotic/stupid powers that be (e.g. the 9th circus court of appeals) give way too much leeway/credit/"rights" to previously convicted scumbags.

gotta run right now, will try to post examples later...

[mcsap]

Although there aren't many " plateaus" in the world of LE , one of them is kinda nice. When you show up for traffic court and or criminal court and the defense attorney sees that you are the arresting officer and advises their client to just plead GUILTY.

This takes a number of years and knowing your craft to reach this point.

[retdetsgt]

They make me do a better job. I do exactly what CatDoc does - I write every report and scrutinize it from a defense point of view before submitting it. Conducting our investigations and writing our reports through the eyes of the defense helps us make sure that the defendant will either have to plea or just take what the prosecutor gives because he has no hope at trial.

Absolutely. Which is why they're important to the system. I learned to work just as hard to prove someone innocent as I did guilty. And a few times, I was surprised to find maybe the suspect didn't do it. Plus it always made me feel more confident when it went to trial.

If you've done your job right, you shouldn't have to worry about defense lawyers if you have a decent prosecutor. If you did a sloppy job, you deserve to get fried on the stand. And that happened to me a few times early in my career.

As Chief Wiggims said, "I'd rather a thousand guilty go free than have to chase after them". Wait, is that right????

[Creeker]

My former Sheriff is a Lawyer.

Aside from him being so insulated from the Troops that he doesn't know whats going on, he was a really nice guy.

The only Lawyers I hated were the Chicken ****s, the ones who performed the cheap stunts.