telekinetic

I was thinking about this the other day (and the Miranda thread reminded me of it): Who here, that carries or owns firearms, already has a criminal defense lawyer?

How formal is that relationship?
Do you have a number picked out of a phone book, or from a friend's recommendation?
Have you used their services in the past for other things?
Have you met with them, explained why you might need their services, and reached some sort of understanding?
Have you gone so far as to put them on retainer, and if so, what exactly is the nature of that financial relationship?
Are you a member of a club or organization who retains a lawyer for this purpose?
Have you never thought about it?

The last thing I want to do if I have to use lethal force (even if it doesn't result in a fatality) is be digging through Google on my phone looking for lawyer reviews while waiting for the cops to get there.

I'll happily expand this to non-self defense contexts as well...there are many instances where you could be wrongly (or rightly, I suppose) accused of a crime, and need a lawyer...how prepared are you for those situations?

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twisted no more

Plan9

I have one socked away for a rainy day. I used his services in the past and would continue to use them since he accepts payment in firearms.

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Whatever you can carry.

"You should not drink... and bake."

snowy

I have one in mind. I've not actually met her, but she is the lawyer for students at my university (free legal services for students, FTW) and also works in private practice. Based on what friends have said about her, I'd call her first.

A friend's mom is also a juvenile attorney and could refer me to additional legal resources as necessary.

I should add that even though I am not a gun owner, the experience of above friend being wrongly accused of DUI has taught me that it's valuable to have legal counsel in mind for when you need it, because even if you're a good law-abiding citizen you may someday need a lawyer.

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If I am not better, at least I am different. --Jean-Jacques Rousseau

The_Dunedan

QFMFT!

Doubly so in self-defense scenarios, even if a gun isn't involved. It's not unheard of for people to be sued by the Bad Guy (if it survives) or the Bad Guy's family (if it doesn't).

"My little Johnny would never rob anyone! He only waved that knife in your face and tried to take your money and threatened to kill you because of his Bad Friends! You must have just been -waiting- for this, so you could kill someone! I'm suing!"

This in addition to the fact that a lot of jurisdictions investigate -every- homicide as a potential Murder. Until it's established that yes, it was a Bad Guy you shot, and yes, it was trying to do something it oughtn't, and no, you weren't waiting in ambush or being provocative, a shooter can expect to be questioned, lose their weapon, and possibly be detained or arrested. Not a situation you want to go into lawyer-less, especially if you're unlucky enough to live in Chicago, DC, San Francisco, or some equally anti-self-defense jurisdiction.

rahl

My best friends father is both a judge as well as having a private law practice. He is my first line of defense, he doesn't handle criminal law in his practice but does as a judge. He will be my representation until I can obtain a lawyer who specializes in self defense shootings.

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spindles

Don't own a gun (and live in a country where I can't legally own one), but have a lawyer that I've used in the past.

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Ilow

The treasurer of the gun club I belong to is an attorney and a friend of mine, and the club actually just signed up a member who specializes in gun law. That being said, I think it's pretty handy to have an attorney friend who you trust to make a recommendation for any type of legal counsel you might need. In my travels I have become friends and acquaintances with lawyers who specialize in criminal, divorce, real estate, etc., and my sister's boyfriend is a lawyer, so i guess I am somewhat fortunate (or very unfortunate, depending on your views of lawyers, I guess).

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"Religion is the one area of our discourse in which it is considered noble to pretend to be certain about things no human being could possibly be certain about"
--Sam Harris

Cynthetiq

Since I do not have any firearms currently, no I do not have one. If I was still living in LA, I would probably own firearms and would know who I was to call in the event of any discharge of my firearm.

Since my normal day to day is about my employment I do have a good friend who is an employment lawyer and he handles all my contracts involving employment.

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longbough

Luckily I know one of the top ten criminal defense lawyers in San Francisco. He was recently appointed a judge ... so I'd have to deal with his associate if I needed help. Good man.

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"I do believe that, where there is only a choice between cowardice and violence, I would advise violence. Thus when my eldest son asked me what he should have done, had he been present when I was almost fatally assaulted in 1908, whether he should have run away and seen me killed or whether he should have used his physical force which he could and wanted to use, and defended me, I told him that it was his duty to defend me even by using violence." - Mahatma Ghandi