- What is a target letter? What should I do if I get a target letter in New Mexico?
- Introduction
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- Without a doubt, getting a target letter is one of the scariest things that can be delivered. Whether you are in jail and have it served on you in your cell, or you are at your home and find it delivered in the mail, a target letter is an important but disturbing revelation that requires immediate and serious consideration and action by consulting with and retaining a lawyer.
- In New Mexico, before you are charged in the District Court with a felony, you have the right to a formal finding of probable cause by a judge in a preliminary hearing or by a panel of grand jurors. In Bernalillo County, the more serious crimes like homicides and sexual offenses are typically brought to a grand jury. In other counties, more cases are brought to preliminary hearings. If you receive a target letter, it means that the prosecution is going to bring your case before a grand jury to get that formal finding of probable cause.
- A grand jury is a secret hearing. You do not have the right to go to your own grand jury hearing. The only way to go is to actually testify, but even then you will not be allowed in until its your turn to testify. You do not get discovery for a grand jury, so you truly are flying blind.
- To learn more about what happens at the Grand Jury, please read: What is a Grand Jury Hearing? – Max Pines Law.
- To learn more about a preliminary hearing, please read: What is a Preliminary Hearing? – Max Pines Law.
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- What does a target letter say?
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- The target letter tells you that you are the target of the prosecutor’s investigation.
- The target letter tells you the charges that the prosecutor is seeking to charge you with and when they allegedly occurred.
- The target letter tells you when your grand jury hearing will be.
- The target letter will advise you of your right to testify or not and your right to propose evidence at the grand jury hearing.
- Getting a target letter tells you that the prosecution is serious about your case. The DA only has time for so many grand jury hearings. Having a grand jury means the DA is putting in resources and wants to proceed.
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- What should you do if you receive a target letter?
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- Truly if you are receiving a target letter, you really need to consult with an attorney immediately. You need to have a knowledgeable ally to advise and prepare you; that knowledgeable ally can only be a lawyer. A lawyer is knowledgeable because he or she should be deeply versed in the process and the types of evidence that can be used against you to advise you about next steps. A lawyer is an ally because they must put your interests first and not tell anyone what you have said to your lawyer in private.
- Only an attorney can reliably give you good advice on whether to propose the DA ask the witnesses any questions, whether to call witnesses of your own and whether to testify or not. It is rare to testify at the grand jury, but the other questions are possibilities that you need counsel on.
- And at this time you need support from a compassionate attorney. Getting a target letter means that you may soon be indicted with a felony crime. The stress and the unknown require the unique support that a caring attorney can give. This is a valuable service that not all attorneys provide. But it is so crucial because receiving a target letter is just the very beginning of a long hard fight.
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