Welcome back. We’re glad you joined us again for this discussion on why a court appointed attorney isn’t the right choice when fighting CPS. As we mentioned in the previous post, when you’re right to parent your kids is being called into question, you need to go in guns blazing. (And they need to be big guns!) Plus, you have to have a lot of ammo on hand. So hiring an attorney who’s going to bring a pocket knife to that gun fight doesn’t make any sense. Not if you were actually hoping to win.
Money, time and experience matter in a CPS case!
Fighting CPS is not like any other kind of legal battle – not that we recommend you get a court appointed attorney for any other kind of legal entanglement either. But still, you need to understand that dealing with CPS requires a very specific skill set, and a very specific understanding of the law. If you’re at risk of having your children taken away, or your parental rights terminated, court appointed attorneys are going to do less than nothing for you!
CPS cases often involve testimony from medical experts, and time consuming eyewitness testimony from people who interact with you and your child on a regular basis. Then there’s the issue of testing for rare diseases and genetic conditions that would explain a child’s “injuries.” None of that even features on the radar when a court appointed attorney takes your case!
CPS cases are very different from other, criminal cases!
CPS cases are very different from other types of criminal cases. CPS workers are allowed to come into your home, discuss your situation with you under the guise of helping you, and then turn all of that information over to the cops. They’re not required to mirandize you before they speak to you. Which means they can take anything you say (often completely out of context) and use it against you, and there’s nothing you can do.
They also don’t have to tell you that whatever you say could end up in a police file, or be used against you in court. They don’t even have to be honest with you. So with that in mind, imagine how damaging it would be to be defended by an attorney who doesn’t even have the time to talk to you before appearing next to you in court. Your case is trashed before it even got started.
The attorney you choose will impact the outcome of your case!
Fighting CPS is a very challenging prospect. And if you’re being represented by a court appointed attorney, the truth is you’re pretty much facing them alone. And having duked it out with CPS over and over, for decades now, we know how challenging it can be. Seriously – they don’t mess around, and they don’t play fair! So despite your best efforts, you really don’t want to go up against them without expert help.
If you or a loved one have been accused of child abuse or neglect, we urge you not to rely on the court appointed lawyers or the public defender’s office for a solution to your problem. Call us instead. The CPS defense team at The Kronzek Firm has built up lasting relationships with a wide variety of experts. We have decades of experience all over Michigan, and regardless of what accusations have been made against you by CPS, we work to strategically and aggressively defend against those charges.