Q: My brother has been in jail 20 years, since I was a kid. Is there a way I can get his court/trial docs?
I grew up without my brother and recently he has gotten into contact with me and wants to be involved in my life. I would like to know the details of his circumstances first, since nobody in our family ever discussed it. He told me he has no copies of his documents and I was wondering if I could request them myself or would need an attorney to get access to the paperwork. My brother says he has no problem and would give whatever authorization needed for me to be able to see it.
A:
Sorry to hear you had these family concerns since your childhood. Court records are public records. In order to search for court records, you need to know the defendant's name and the year he was either charged or convicted or both. If he was in prison for 20 years, I would assume he committed a serious crime against the person of another. You don't go to prison for 20 years for Jaywalking. You could hire someone familiar with the court system to assist you, either a criminal law attorney or perhaps even an attorney service like One Legal or DDS who can do research for you in the court files.
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A:
MORE INFO NEEDED.
YOU SHOULD RETAIN A LAWYER TO GET A POWER OF ATTORNEY OR FOR YOUR BRO TO SIGN A REQUEST..............ABSENT THAT YOU ARE NOT ENTITLED TO THEM AS THEY ARE CONFIDENTIAL
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