Appealing a Criminal Conviction

If you have recently been convicted of a crime in Charlotte, North Carolina, you might be feeling hopeless. You may be wondering whether or not you have grounds to appeal your conviction. Perhaps you were not happy with your legal representation or believe an error was made that resulted in your conviction.

At Arnold & Smith, PLLC, we understand that you are probably deeply upset that you were convicted at trial. Filing a criminal appeal may offer you the opportunity to receive a new trial. In some cases, it could mean that the Court of Appeals overturns your conviction. Time is of the essence when it comes to the appeals process. We can review your case and advise you as to your best legal options. Contact our attorneys today at 704-370-2828, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to schedule your initial consultation.

Public defense attorneys usually have substantial caseloads and are sometimes required to juggle many clients at a time. Perhaps your public defense attorney was overwhelmed during your trial and did not give your legal representation as much attention as you would have preferred. It can sometimes be easy when stretched across such a large caseload to overlook an important detail or argue a flawed strategy as a trial attorney.

A new appellate court attorney can offer a pair of fresh eyes when reviewing your case. No matter how good your trial attorney was during the trial process, complete immersion in your case might have caused tunnel vision, which could create some blind spots. A fresh set of eyes can identify these blind spots when preparing your appeal.

Trial court lawyers develop a legal defense theory at the trial level. Choosing a legal theory necessarily means choosing some arguments over other arguments. While this process is necessary for every criminal defense strategy, sometimes, better arguments are not apparent because of decisions the trial court lawyer made.

After reviewing our clients’ judgments and trial court records, the lawyers at Arnold & Smith, PLLC often have an entirely new legal argument. Sometimes, the most difficult legal issues are ones that a trial court attorney did not have time to adequately consider. When we review our clients’ court records, we may see the case more objectively. With our fresh eyes, we can spot legal errors that other lawyers might have missed.

Appellate and trial judges both try to promote justice and correctly and consistently apply the law. Yet, the purpose of trial court judges, and appellate judges are completely different. The purpose of the trial court is to focus on the facts of the criminal case. Trial court judges are the “triers of fact” who are responsible for reviewing the evidence. On the contrary, appellate court judges will review a case for the first time. They will not listen to evidence or conduct a trial. Instead, they will read appellate briefs that contain complex legal arguments. In most cases, the defendant and the state prosecutors submit one or two legal briefs. They may also make oral arguments. After that, the appellate judge will make a decision.

Appellate judges are responsible for using the correct legal standard of review. They must also effectively develop a criminal appellate law. Finally, they focus on creating a legal precedent that will not harm cases at the trial court level. Judges are serious about not making legal decisions that could increase frivolous cases or drain resources of the courts and future criminal defendants. Our Charlotte criminal appeals attorneys know how to craft compelling legal arguments on behalf of our clients.

Attorneys who have appellate experience know how to effectively find errors at the trial court level and how to frame these trial court errors to make a compelling legal case. Appellate attorneys know how to sort through potential grounds for appeals and focus on the ones most likely to result in a favorable outcome.

At Arnold & Smith, PLLC, we can help you navigate through the aftermath of a conviction and build your case for an appeal. If you have been convicted of a crime in North Carolina and you are interested in filing a criminal appeal, we can help. Contact the lawyers at Arnold & Smith, PLLC today to schedule your initial case evaluation. For your convenience and safety, we now offer video and phone conferencing. If you prefer an in-person consultation, we have three easy to reach locations in Uptown Charlotte, Monroe, and Mooresville.