INVESTIGATED BY FEDERAL AGENTS, WHAT SHOULD I DO AND WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?
Prior to being indicted, there is usually personal contact with some type of Federal agent. This is usually be an agent of the IRS, ATF, FBI, DEA, ICE or another of the other three-letter-agencies. This is your first clue that you need legal representation. At this point, exercise your right to remain silent and call an attorney. Your attorney will then contact the agent to find out what the focus of their investigation is and determine if, under any circumstances, you should talk to that agent. The typical answer is “no” you should not talk to the agent if you are a target of a Federal investigation and prosecution.
After personal contact, if room remains for negotiation, your case can occasionally be resolved through cooperation or through pre-trial diversion. The pre-trial diversion program is the only way to resolve a Federal criminal matter, absent an acquittal or dismissal, which will be highly favorable to you. Your attorney should be highly familiar with Chapter 9 of the U.S. Attorney's Manual and how to get you into pre-trial diversion.
Next, you will be brought to Federal court either through a summons or a warrant. Your attorney should insist upon a summons to avoid you being arrested at work or in front of your family. Once you arrive in court, you will make your "initial appearance." At the initial appearance, you will enter a plea of not guilty and a detention hearing will be scheduled (unless the government does seek to not detain you). Your attorney should be able to avoid a detention hearing if he is hired early enough to establish a dialogue with the U.S. Attorney assigned to your case.
If you have already been indicted, the next step in Federal court is release or pretrial detention under the Bail Reform Act. There is no actual bail that you post in order to get out of jail like in state cases. Occasionally, there is a Federal bail set but it requires a specialized Federal bail bondsman. At your detention hearing where a Judge, usually a Magistrate Judge, will decide under certain factors whether you are a danger to the community, a flight risk or if you may be released on conditions of pretrial release. You need to be aware that there are also "presumption of detention" cases involving large quantities of drugs and other dangerous crimes.
Prior to this hearing, a probation officer will interview you, hopefully alongside an experienced attorney who is present to guide you through the minefield which determines whether you go home or stay in jail. The detention hearing is governed by special rules of which most attorneys are not aware. For example, witness statements are required to be disclosed, testimony is required to be produced and the traditional rules of evidence do not always apply. Again, it is very important to have an experienced Federal attorney by your side each step of the way. If you are detained pretrial, your next step will be to get to trial as soon as possible with a lawyer who will have your case prepared to win.