Montgomery County Student Defense Lawyer
As a college student, you have your entire personal and professional life ahead of you. Unfortunately, you also have the capacity as a college student to make mistakes or have lapses in judgment that can have a negative and potentially irreversible impact on your future.
Whether you are facing college or university disciplinary proceedings, criminal prosecution, or both, you may need the assistance of a Montgomery County student defense lawyer.
Student disciplinary proceedings are unique and require legal counsel experienced in handling these cases. Likewise, students may have special considerations and needs that other adults facing criminal charges may not.
As a result, enlisting the services of an experienced and skilled criminal defense lawyer who is accustomed to handling these matters may be wise.
College Students and Criminal Charges
Some of the most typical criminal charges that college students face are related to alcohol. Although most college students are adults when they go away to school, they still are under the age of 21, which makes it unlawful for them to consume, drive after consuming, possess, or purchase alcohol.
Due to the prevalence of drinking on many college campuses, however, college students often find themselves facing alcohol-related criminal charges.
College students often find themselves facing other types of criminal charges, as well. Some of the more common criminal charges, aside from those related to alcohol consumption, may include:
- Possession of marijuana or controlled substances
- Disorderly conduct and vandalism
- Resisting law enforcement and assault
- Sexual harassment, sexual assault, rape, and violations of protective orders
These criminal charges range from those with minor consequences to those that carry the potential for far more severe consequences. Even college students with no criminal background can be subject to fines, probation, community service hours, and incarceration, depending on the offense involved. When students are facing criminal charges, contacting a student defense lawyer in MoCo for advice may be essential to reaching a more favorable outcome.
Montgomery County College Student Disciplinary Proceedings
Even if students never face criminal charges following an arrest, if they were exonerated of the charges, or if the court dismissed the charges, students nonetheless could face school disciplinary proceedings for violating their student conduct code.
These administrative proceedings also can arise from other alleged misconduct on campus, such as academic dishonesty, pranks that result in property damage and violations of different student rules.
Student disciplinary proceedings offer far fewer protections and rights for students than those to which they are entitled in the criminal justice system. Students typically have no right to a lawyer, no right to confront their accusers, and may have little access to the evidence against them.
There is no presumption of innocence until proven guilty, and the standard of proof often is a “preponderance” of the evidence, which is a much lower standard than “beyond a reasonable doubt.”
As a result, college students facing school conduct code proceedings may benefit from the help of a student defense attorney in MoCo, especially when the stakes are high. For students facing potential suspension or expulsion from school, such as may be the case in allegations of sexual harassment or sexual misconduct, legal representation in these proceedings may be highly beneficial.
How a Montgomery County Student Defense Attorney Can Help
Whether you are facing criminal charges, allegations of student conduct code violations, or both, you could be facing harsh penalties that could severely impact your plans and goals for the future.
You are likely to need legal assistance in these proceedings to adequately protect your rights and avoid some of the negative repercussions that could result from a criminal conviction or a finding of misconduct.
A Montgomery County student defense lawyer may be best situated to advocate on your behalf in these cases.
Prompt action can be essential in both student disciplinary cases and criminal cases, as both cases tend to move quickly. Taking time to contact legal counsel as soon as possible following an arrest or receipt of notice of student conduct code proceedings can be essential to a better outcome in these cases.