Hiring a private investigator is something most criminal defense lawyers need to seriously consider in any criminal case. That doesn’t necessarily mean that you always hire one, but it certainly needs to be considered. In assault cases, particularly where the complaining witness and the defendant don’t know each other very well, it’s important to get as much information as you can.

In New York, the information you can obtain about a complaining witness is very conservative. They don’t allow you to have any information other than the complaining witness’s name. It’s important to try and get as much information about the complaining witness as possible, and it’s also useful to present that to a private investigator. Having the defendant meet with the private investigator and to see what they can do can greatly help your search for more information about what occurred during the event.

If you’re thinking about hiring a private investigator for a New York criminal defense case, contact NYC defense attorney Paul Petrus.