First, you can defend yourself with or without a lawyer. The right of defense is the legal right of the defendant, and the people's court shall guarantee the realization of the defendant's right of defense. The defendant may defend himself or entrust others to defend himself. Second, according to the relevant provisions of the Criminal Procedure Law of People's Republic of China (PRC), entrusted defense is the right of the parties. In addition to exercising the right of defense, the parties may also entrust a defender to defend themselves. Whether to entrust or not is the right of the parties, who can exercise their rights or give up their rights. Defenders are not only lawyers, but also people recommended by people's organizations or the defendant's unit, the defendant's guardian, relatives and friends can become entrusted defenders.
For some special cases, lawyers should be appointed to defend them, such as blind, deaf, dumb, mental patients who have not completely lost the ability to identify or control their own behavior, and defendants who may be sentenced to life imprisonment or death penalty must have lawyers to defend them in order to protect the defendant's litigation rights and other legitimate rights and interests. But even with a legal aid lawyer, the defendant can defend himself. During the trial, the defendant may refuse the defender to continue to defend him, or entrust another defender.