{"id":38123,"date":"2008-03-26T16:35:41","date_gmt":"2008-03-26T21:35:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/content.findlaw-admin.com\/ability-legal\/uncategorized\/your-constitutional-rights-as-a-criminal-defendant-what-you-need.html"},"modified":"2008-03-26T16:35:41","modified_gmt":"2008-03-26T21:35:41","slug":"your-constitutional-rights-as-a-criminal-defendant-what-you-need","status":"publish","type":"corporate","link":"https:\/\/corporate.findlaw.com\/litigation-disputes\/your-constitutional-rights-as-a-criminal-defendant-what-you-need.html","title":{"rendered":"Your Constitutional Rights as a Criminal Defendant: What You Need to Know"},"content":{"rendered":"<section class=\"fl-gutenberg-byline\">\n    <div class=\"fl-gutenberg-byline-content\">\n                    <p><em>This article was edited and reviewed by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.findlaw.com\/company\/our-team.html\" rel=\"noopener\">FindLaw Attorney Writers<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n                | Last reviewed\n        <time>\n                            June 07, 2026\n                    <\/time>\n    <\/div>\n\n    \n    <details class=\"fl-gutenberg-byline-toggle fl-gutenberg-byline-legally-reviewed\">\n        <summary>\n            <i class=\"fl-gutenberg-byline-icon\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>\n            Legally Reviewed\n        <\/summary>\n\n        <div class=\"fl-gutenberg-byline-toggle-content\">\n            <p><em>This article has been written and reviewed for legal accuracy, clarity, and style by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.findlaw.com\/company\/our-team.html\" rel=\"noopener\">FindLaw\u2019s team of legal writers and attorneys<\/a> and in accordance with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.findlaw.com\/company\/company-history\/editorial-policy.html\" rel=\"noopener\">our editorial standards<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n        <\/div>\n    <\/details>\n\n    <details class=\"fl-gutenberg-byline-toggle fl-gutenberg-byline-fast-checked\">\n        <summary>\n            <i class=\"fl-gutenberg-byline-icon\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>\n            Fact-Checked\n        <\/summary>\n\n        <div class=\"fl-gutenberg-byline-toggle-content\">\n            <p><em>The last updated date refers to the last time this article was reviewed by FindLaw or one of our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.findlaw.com\/company\/our-team\/contributing-authors.html\" rel=\"noopener\">contributing authors<\/a>. We make every effort to keep our articles updated. For information regarding a specific legal issue affecting you, please <a href=\"https:\/\/lawyers.findlaw.com\/?fli=bylinelink\" rel=\"noopener\">contact an attorney in your area<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n        <\/div>\n    <\/details>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"rxbodyfield\" xmlns:o=\"urn:www.microsoft.com\/office\" xmlns:st1=\"urn:www.microsoft.com\/smarttags\" xmlns:w=\"urn:www.microsoft.com\/word\" xmlns:x=\"urn:www.microsoft.com\/excel\"><p>You have numerous rights under the Federal and Missouri State Constitutions. It is important to have a basic understanding of these rights so you can exercise them if needed. It is always recommended that a person charged with or accused of the commission of a crime contact an attorney that practices in the area of criminal defense to protect all of his or her constitutional rights including, the following:<\/p><p\/><ol><li>The right under the Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution to be free from any unreasonable search and seizure,<br\/><br\/><\/li><li>The right under the Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution to remain silent,<br\/><br\/><\/li><li>The right to a trial either before a judge or a jury,<br\/><br\/><\/li><li>The right to summon witnesses and compel their attendance to testify on behalf of the defendant,<br\/><br\/><\/li><li>The right to confront and cross-examine any witness the State may call,<br\/><br\/><\/li><li>The right to a speedy trial,<br\/><br\/><\/li><li>The right to be presumed innocent unless and until the State has proven each and every element of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt,<br\/><br\/><\/li><li>The right to be represented by an attorney,<br\/><br\/><\/li><li>The right to a Court appointed attorney if the defendant establishes they are unable to employ an attorney because of their indigence,<br\/><br\/><\/li><li>The right to consult with an attorney, family members and friends before entering any pleas of guilty or not guilty before the Court.<br\/><\/li><\/ol>If charged with or accused of the commission of a crime, protect your rights by contacting an attorney that practices in the area of criminal defense.<p\/><blockquote><div align=\"center\"><b>****************************<\/b><\/div><div align=\"justify\">*Mr. Parker is the former prosecuting attorney of Dent County, Missouri and currently serves as Vice-Chair of the Criminal Law Committee in the Missouri House of Representatives. He is a member of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Missouri Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers and the Missouri Association of Trial Attorneys.<\/div><\/blockquote><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>You have numerous rights under the Federal and Missouri State Constitutions. It is important to have a basic understanding of these rights so you can exercise them if needed. It is always recommended that a person charged with or accused of the &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_stopmodifiedupdate":true,"_modified_date":"","_cloudinary_featured_overwrite":false},"corporate_categories":[6529,6520,6530],"class_list":["post-38123","corporate","type-corporate","status-publish","hentry","corporate_categories-litigation-disputes__criminal-litigation","corporate_categories-litigation-disputes","corporate_categories-litigation-disputes__criminal-litigation__other-business-crime"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/corporate.findlaw.com\/legal-api\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/corporate\/38123","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/corporate.findlaw.com\/legal-api\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/corporate"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/corporate.findlaw.com\/legal-api\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/corporate"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/corporate.findlaw.com\/legal-api\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=38123"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"corporate_categories","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/corporate.findlaw.com\/legal-api\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/corporate_categories?post=38123"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}