If you are accused of embezzlement in California, you must immediately appoint a specialized white-collar criminal defense attorney to ensure early intervention and timely defense activities. This can not only improve your chances of a successful acquittal, but an attorney can negotiate a private civil compromise to have the charges dropped.
Key Takeaways
- Exercising your right to silence will prevent you from saying anything that can damage your defense.
- Hiring a top white-collar criminal defense attorney is key to preparing a competent defense that will protect your professional and financial future.
- A competent white-collar criminal defense lawyer from DCD LAW can get your charges dismissed before trial through strong evidence gathering and pre-filing intervention.
When accused of corporate embezzlement in California, you must act immediately to secure the services of a professional white-collar criminal defense attorney from a premium law firm like DCD LAW. This will help you prepare and execute the best defense against all charges brought against you. In the long run, this will protect your freedom, along with your professional reputation and financial future.
Important Steps To Take When Accused Of Embezzlement In California
Here’s what you should do in case of an accusation.
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Invoke your right to silence
Anything that you say or do in your defense can be recorded by your company and then used against you in court. Every text message, every email, every statement that you make after the accusation has been leveled will be scrutinized during the preparation of your company’s case against you. Therefore, you must say something that can be twisted by your company’s lawyers to fit their narratives.
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Do not tamper with evidence
Do not attempt to destroy evidence (e.g., company files, paperwork, hard drives, etc.), as it not only makes you appear guilty to prosecutors, but it also makes you liable for separate charges for destroying evidence. If your company has any evidence that could corroborate their narratives, disclose the presence and details of such evidence to your attorney. It is your attorney’s responsibility to deal with the evidence and its impact on your case/trial.
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Hire a top white-collar criminal defense attorney
You must engage the services of a competent criminal defense attorney specialized in corporate embezzlement and other such white-collar crimes. General practitioners may lack the relevant skills to ensure proper forensic accounting, making it difficult to challenge the intricacies of corporate data tracking, bank audits, etc. A specialized defense attorney can attack the charges strategically to dismantle the prosecution’s case.
Tactical Strategies to Fight Corporate Embezzlement Charges
It is the prosecution’s responsibility to establish and prove, beyond any doubt, the allegations made by your company. To prepare an effective strategic defense against these embezzlement charges, your defense attorney must undermine and disprove each of the core elements presented by the prosecution.
| Defense Strategy | Legal Application |
Strategic Objective |
| Good Faith Claim of Right | Prove you honestly believed you had a legitimate right to the funds. | Negate the specific criminal intent required for an embezzlement conviction. |
| Lack of Intent to Deprive | Demonstrate that the transactional discrepancy was a clerical error or an authorized loan. | Dismantle the prosecution’s claim of a fraudulent conversion of property. |
| False Accusations / Frame-Up | Show that another employee or executive altered the digital ledgers. | Shift the institutional blame to the actual culpable party. |
| Civil Compromise Negotiation | Repay the disputed funds in exchange for the company dropping the police report. | Stop the case from entering the criminal justice system entirely. |
Table: Tactical Defense Strategies Against Embezzlement Charges
The Legal Recourse Of A Corporate Embezzlement Case
When you are trying to fight corporate embezzlement charges, you have to approach the case methodically if you ever hope to resolve the case before it goes to trial.
- Phase 1: Decline corporate & public interrogations or interviews without your defense lawyer present. Be polite but assertive when refusing invitations or summons for interviews or interrogations. Also, do not sign any acknowledgements for restitutions without a lawyer reviewing them first.
- Phase 2: Have your defense attorney conduct an independent forensic audit. You may have to hire an independent forensic accountant to review every transaction and identify tracking errors, system glitches, etc.
- Phase 3: Talk to your defense attorney about pre-filing interventions. If your lawyer can identify credible evidence to disprove the company’s allegations, they should negotiate with the prosecution to dismiss the charges even before they are filed officially with the court.
- Phase 4: Your defense attorney will determine if evidence was collected unconstitutionally or if the evidence isn’t sufficient enough to sustain the prosecution’s case. In such cases, your lawyer can file a motion to suppress the evidence in question or for the charges to be dismissed.
Each of these steps can help your charges get dismissed long before you are required to set foot inside a California courtroom.
Ensure The Best Defense To Protect Your Rights, Career & Freedom
Accusations of financial misconduct can destroy your career instantly. If you do not defend yourself against these charges well enough, you may end up spending the remainder of your life trying to rebuild a career worthy of note. With a top white-collar criminal defense attorney from DCD LAW, you can provide your professional career and freedom the best chance of surviving the corporate embezzlement charges.
Don’t Delay It Any Longer. Hire A Defense Attorney TODAY!
If you are facing corporate embezzlement charges in California, every minute is going to matter for you. Don’t waste valuable time; consult with a competent defense attorney from DCD LAW right away!
Frequently Asked Questions
Can My Company Legally Access My Personal Bank Accounts During an Ongoing Embezzlement Investigation?
Your employer can view your private financial accounts during an active criminal or civil case in one of two cases:
- They have your explicit and formal consent to access your financial records.
- They have a formal subpoena issued by a court or law enforcement agency.
If your employer produces any financial information tied to your bank accounts, and that evidence wasn’t obtained by one of the above methods, that evidence can be suppressed and deemed inadmissible during trial.
Can My Company Charge Me With Corporate Embezzlement Even if I Fully Intended to Return the Money?
Yes, you can. Under California Penal Code 512 PC, even if you intend to return the property or have already done so before being apprehended, it does not absolve you from the liability for embezzlement. Such an argument cannot be deemed a complete defense against an embezzlement charge.
What Happens if My Company Has Fired Me Even Before Criminal Charges Are Officially Filed?
Termination of employment is a standard practice in corporations for embezzlement cases, but that does not mark the end of the case. Your company will hand over internal audit files to the police or local law enforcement officers for investigation and the issuance of an arrest warrant.
Will I Get My Job Back if the Charges Against Me Are Dropped?
Well, that would depend on the progression of the case and the negotiations between your DCD LAW defense attorney and the prosecutors. If the charges were dropped due to false accusations and other such errors on the part of your company, you can demand your job back along with other compensations. However, in the case of civil compromise negotiations, the discussions between all stakeholders will determine the outcomes and whether you are re-accepted in the company.
How Will an Embezzlement Conviction Prevent Me From Gaining Future Corporate Employment?
Corporate embezzlement is classified as a crime of dishonesty and moral turpitude. A conviction will create a permanent record that will appear on background checks whenever you apply to new companies and job opportunities. As a result, it may heavily restrict your ability to secure corporate, banking, or fiduciary positions.
