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What Does The Prosecution Need to Prove in a White Collar Case?

A Virginia federal white collar defense attorney can help a person charged with a white collar crime understand what the prosecution will need to prove.

The proof that the prosecution needs to provide will depend entirely on the exact crime the person was charged with, like with many other criminal cases. Every criminal case has a certain number of elements that the government needs to prove, and each element needs to be proven beyond a reasonable doubt. If one element has to do with jurisdiction or one element has to do with the proper or improper transfer of money, the government will have to prove each of those elements beyond a reasonable doubt.

So whatever the government is looking to charge you with, you need to sit down and look at the specific things that the prosecution will need to prove to sustain a conviction. Then you will want to have a Virginia federal white collar attorney look at the evidence, compare it to the elements that the prosecution will need to prove, and look for soft spots in their case. To learn more, call and schedule a consultation today.

How the Government Proves their Case

The government can prove their case in many different ways. Many times they will subpoena evidence from banks or lending agencies. In addition, they might have eyewitnesses who claim they saw you committing the crime. If it is a bribery case, they may have someone testify about the kickbacks that took place and the benefits that were obtained.

The government will obtain any information ranging from contracts to ledgers to tax returns to help support their case. The evidence that the government will compile will depend on the nature of the case.

Defenses Against the Government’s Claims

There are many different kinds of defenses a person can use. There are defenses that have to do with constitutional violations. These defenses may include whether there was an improper search or seizure or whether the person confessed under the wrong set of circumstances without first being properly advised of their rights under the Fifth Amendment. The defense that a person ultimately uses will be very fact intensive and depend on the circumstances of the individual case.

White Collar cases in Virginia are always about money. If the government alleges that a certain amount of money made its way into a person’s bank account without proper authorization, through whatever illegal means they think, if we can properly source that income from some other legitimate source, that will be a strong defense.

In other words, if the government says that you have $20,000 in your bank account in cash and in kickbacks, when in fact it can be established that your old aunt passed away and left you $20,000 in her will and you deposited it in your bank account around the time they claim this kickback took place, then that will be a defense. Because if the government does not have the correct source of the money or they cannot prove where they think it came from, you can use that as a defense.

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