In criminal cases, the following persons have the right to entrust defenders:
1, criminal suspect and defendant.
2. Guardians of criminal suspects and defendants. Guardians can be parents, designated guardianship units, etc.
3. Close relatives of criminal suspects and defendants. Such as husband, wife, father, mother, son, daughter, brothers and sisters and so on.
4. In practice, the units where criminal suspects and defendants work, regardless of gender, can also hire defenders for them.
The difference between a criminal suspect and a defendant is noteworthy. The criminal suspect has the right to entrust a defender from the day when he is interrogated for the first time by the investigation organ (police, procuratorate) or takes compulsory measures. However, during the investigation, only lawyers can be entrusted as defenders. The defendant has the right to entrust a defender at any time. Both the suspect and the defendant are prosecuted in criminal proceedings. The difference between the two is that the criminal suspect only exists in the investigation stage and the examination and prosecution stage of the public prosecution case, while the defendant exists in both the public prosecution case and the private prosecution case, and both exist in the trial stage. The appellations of "criminal suspect" and "defendant" not only indicate that they are in different stages of litigation, but also have independent meanings, that is, "criminal suspect" may not necessarily develop into "defendant". In some cases, after investigation and prosecution, it is finally decided not to pursue criminal responsibility, then the "criminal suspect" will not become the "defendant" and the lawsuit will end. If the suspect A only exists in the stage of police investigation and prosecution by the procuratorate, A and his close relatives can only entrust lawyers as defenders at this stage. If they decide to bring a lawsuit to the court after examination by the procuratorate, A will be the defendant at the court trial stage, and A can entrust a defender at any time, and the identity of the defender is no longer limited to lawyers. Those who are questioned by the police or procuratorate for suspected crimes or even take coercive measures should be treated with caution. This is no small matter, and serious situations will affect their lives. For criminal cases, we suggest that the most appropriate thing is to know the details from professional criminal defense lawyers, and entrust professional criminal defense to intervene and assist in handling if necessary.