The privilege is at the heart of a client’s right to a fair trial.
If you have been accused of a crime, you probably are aware of your right to an attorney. You may also be aware that whatever you tell your lawyer is secret — or in more technical terms, “privileged.” This means that (with just a few exceptions), your attorney cannot divulge what you tell him or her. Your lawyer also cannot be forced to tell anyone what you have told him or her. The attorney-client privilege is the bedrock of the American legal system, and is particularly important in criminal cases.
As an experienced Orange County criminal defense lawyer can explain, the reason for the attorney-client privilege is simple: if a defendant in a criminal case cannot speak openly to his or her attorney, then the lawyer might not be able to put together an effective legal defense. Imagine a scenario where a man is accused of robbing a bank. He has a great alibi — he was with his best friend’s wife at the time — but he doesn’t want to tell anyone for obvious reasons. Because of the attorney-client privilege, he can tell his Orange County criminal defense lawyer. From there his attorney can decide how to handle that information. Perhaps further investigation will reveal video from a traffic camera showing the man on the other side of town (near the wife’s house, far away from the bank robbery) at the time of the crime — or the lawyer will convince him that he either has to admit to the affair or go to jail. Either way, the fact that the man knows that he can be candid with his attorney means that his Orange County criminal defense lawyer will be able to put together a better defense.
The attorney-client privilege isn’t in the constitution. But it is relevant to constitutional protections, including the right against self-incrimination found in the Fifth Amendment and the right to legal counsel in the Sixth Amendment.
Because the attorney-client privilege is sacrosanct, prosecutors and law enforcement are not permitted to eavesdrop or otherwise learn the details of communications between attorneys and their clients. Clients would be justifiably reluctant to talk to their attorneys about their cases if they knew that the police could be listening.
Yet recently, it was revealed that the Orange County Sheriff’s Department did just that when they recorded more than 1,000 calls between inmates and their attorneys. Defendants who are in jail are in a difficult position. They need to talk to their lawyers, but generally don’t have too many options other than phones or perhaps in-person meetings with their lawyers at the jail, which may also be monitored.
The attorney-client recordings were discovered in an August 2018 court hearing when a county employee testified that 1,079 phone calls were recorded since 2015. The Sheriff’s Department Staff accessed 58 of those 1,079 recordings 87 times. Neither the inmates nor the attorneys were ever notified that their calls had been recorded, which the Sheriff’s Department maintains was due to a glitch. At least one local attorney has argued that the Orange County Sheriff’s Department has removed telephone calls from the list of recorded calls.
This action by the Orange County Sheriff’s Department — whether due to human error, a technical glitch or other issue — is a clear violation of the attorney-client privilege. A skilled Orange County criminal defense lawyer may be able to challenge criminal cases that involve illegally recorded attorney-client conversations.
The Chambers Law Firm takes attorney-client privilege very seriously. We work with our clients to build the strongest possible defense, and help them achieve the best possible outcome for their goals. Contact us today at 714-760-4088 or dchambers@clfca.com to schedule a free initial consultation with a skilled Orange County criminal defense lawyer.
