During a Fairfax gun investigation, law enforcement will try to determine if the person is illegally possessing a firearm or has broken local gun laws. Anytime a law enforcement officer is asking a person any question, they should assume that they are under investigation. If a law enforcement official asks the person about a gun, they should assume that they are under investigation for a gun charge and consult with a Fairfax gun attorney in order to ensure that they do not hurt their situation any more and are aware of their legal rights.
If law enforcement officers have a search warrant or sometimes pursuant to a traffic stop they are allowed to investigate a person’s car for guns. However, anytime a police offer has reason to fear for safety or safety concerns, they are allowed to inspect a person to see if they possess a gun. It is a lawful pat-down of an individual to feel for guns.
Generally, guns are accepted in the state of Fairfax. However, they are taken seriously by law enforcement and by prosecutors. Anytime that the word “gun” comes up in an investigation for some other type of crime, law enforcement officers are going to look closely into that gun and try to figure out whether or not the person is somebody that should have it and whether or not it is a type of gun the person should have, they are storing it safely, and all of the other things. They are going to try to find something wrong with the way that the person is handling their gun if they come across their path for any reason whatsoever.
The most common types of evidence that are collected in a Fairfax gun investigation just depend on the type of case. The short answer is the gun is usually the most common in gun investigations. But beyond that, it depends upon what is happening in the case.
There could be witness statements. There could be video. There could be fingerprints. There could be any confession depending on what is going on. There could be background check paperwork. There could be gun purchase applications that have been filled out. It depends on the situation.
Authorities go about gathering different types of evidence by talking to people, by looking up information, and by asking for records from gun owners. They mostly will just reach out to people and find out information that way.
There is always room for interpretation but, certainly, when officers are investigating any gun crime, they are going to interpret it against the person. If there is anything that even looks as though it is outside the color of the law, they are going to go ahead and just arrest the person and ask questions later. They often will conduct a follow-up Fairfax gun investigation to ensure they have enough evidence to prosecute the person.
When they do an independent investigation, they basically just question everything. They look for eyewitnesses, they look for a video, they look for any information that the prosecutor has already decided is important, and they see if there is something to refute that.
It is going to depend on the specific circumstance and the facts of the case. But, certainly, mounting a good defense always comes from exposing the flaws in the prosecution’s defense. Looking up one’s own witnesses, one can refute the prosecution’s testimony. Witness testimony is always going to be a helpful thing.
A person should call a lawyer as soon as they think they are being investigated even if they are not sure. That is important to do. It is important to do that because the sooner a person has a lawyer, the sooner they cannot make mistakes like revealing information, accidentally admitting to something, or just giving the police officers reason to arrest the person when they did not have a reason before. It is important to protect a person’s self even if they did nothing wrong because, often, the truth can be misconstrued and these people are charged all the time with crimes.
It is essential to have legal representation during a Fairfax gun investigation. An attorney can ensure that you are receiving appropriate legal counsel and understand your legal rights.