The early steps in any criminal case can make a difference to the outcome. Urgent advice from experienced Brisbane criminal lawyers is critical.

Transcript

[00:00] Hi my name is Amy and I am the Legal Practice Director of Ashworth Lawyers in Brisbane City. We are a Brisbane criminal defence law firm exclusively practising in serious criminal offences.

[00:06] We have been practising for over 10 years and I have been a criminal lawyer for over 18 years.

[00:10] As part of our service to clients, my team of Brisbane criminal lawyers have developed a free guide available on our website of 16 things to do now if you are facing criminal charges in Queensland.

[00:17] A couple of steps are obvious, such as knowing your court date, knowing your bail conditions, and staying calm.

[00:26] However, there are also a couple of very important but less obvious steps that should be taken early.

[00:32] One example is setting up a new e-mail address if police have seized your phone or laptop, or if that email address can be accessed on those devices. This is important when you are contacting our office and sending us emails and also attaching any material.

[00:55] It is also important to remember that if you have any injuries, such as bruises or scratches, that you document it straight away by attending a GP so that it can be recorded. Injuries can heal very quickly and so if you come to our office a week or two, after the incident, the injuries may have already healed.

[01:13] Another step to remember is you should not contact any witnesses.

[01:18] It is common for example, in sexual offences, such as rape or sexual assault, where friends or family may have relevant information about the relationship or behaviour of the complainant with you before and after the alleged incident.

[01:24] In this situation it is important to write down the person's contact details but not to speak to them directly. Pass those details to our team of criminal lawyers here in Brisbane instead and we will discuss with you the best next step.