SWAT

Our Castle Rock criminal defense attorneys have some important news for residents, and it may impact your need for a solid Castle Rock criminal defense.

The Castle Rock Police Department, in using a $200,00 grant, have amassed a wide array of new technology and equipment. That equipment includes: brand new Tasers for street officers, mountain bikes, new uniforms and patches, exercise equipment, in-car camera systems and reality-based training tools.

Castle Rock Police Chief Jack Cauley said that the expenses were intended to help improve response times, up training standards and improve relationships between the police department and the community.

Of course, these are good goals to have, and some of those measures may be helpful to that end.

But here’s what it means for you:

  1. New Tasers are likely going to mean a higher level of force used in Castle Rock arrests than previously. Police will say that they are safer for use than guns. This may be true. However, it would seem that this may open itself up to issues of excessive force during arrests, and the use of Tasers when they really aren’t necessary.
  2. New exercise equipment and training. Presumably, this means the officers you are going to come across will be stronger, more on point. Many in the public will see this as a good thing. Our Castle Rock criminal defense attorneys would only want to make that point that fleeing from a crime scene (which is usually not a good idea in the first place, regardless of whether you have actually done anything wrong) could result in more severe physical consequences for you once they catch up – and of course, they’ll be more likely to catch up now.
  3. In-car cameras. This is a two-sided coin. On one hand, it will reduce the instances of officers fudging the facts. Videos tend not to lie. The problem for you? Videos tend not to lie. For example, in a Castle Rock DUI case, field sobriety tests are often highly subjective, and the courts rely heavily on officer observations. That’s one point that a Castle Rock DUI defense attorney can attack. However, if there is video to back up those observations, it creates greater challenges for your defense.

However, none of this means you don’t have any options following a Castle Rock arrest. Consulting with an experienced Castle Rock defense attorney as soon as possible following the incident is the best way to learn what those options are.