It may seem like a "no-brainer," but hiring a trusted Los Angeles criminal defense attorney is one of the most important thing some people will do in their lives. If you are charged with a serious crime, a qualified, experienced criminal defense attorney may be the only person who can keep you out of jail and harms way. On the flip side, choosing an attorney who isn't trustworthy can cause problems for years.

• In Ohio, an attorney was sentenced to four years for stealing.The former Ohio lawyer who concocted a story about being kidnapped after a client accused her of taking his money, was sentenced Thursday after pleading guilty in November to aggravated theft.
• Another high-profile case involving an attorney concerns Marc Drier, a name partner at a large corporate law firm. He is charged with selling sham investments to hedge funds. His scheme amounted to losses of up to $380 million.

The question becomes, how can you find an Los Angeles criminal defense attorney to trust? First off is finding a criminal defense attorney and/or law firm that has a history of success and that is well respected in its field. There are attorney rankings you can review, including Martindale-Hubbell, which ranks attorneys based on their success and peer ratings. An "AV" rating is the top rating an attorney can receive. Martindale-Hubbell is a trusted name among lawyers and the legal community. Another way to find a qualified criminal defense attorney in Los Angeles is to check what their background is; if a criminal defense attorney has experience teaching at a major university or has worked as a District Attorney, that person has some pretty serious qualifications. Overall, you want to be able to trust an attorney with your money, your case and possibly your life. Tagged as: california criminal laws