Jerome Paun

I am a criminal defense attorney. I am responsible for and I proudly represent each and every one of my clients personally. I am honored to have been selected as one of the top 100 criminal defense attorneys in Connecticut by the American Society of Legal Advocates and the National Trial Lawyers each year since 2014.

Although I am a solo practitioner, I am not alone in my law office. I have a wonderful legal assistant, Kelley Finlan, who is most capable and very helpful to my clients. She is usually the voice they hear and speak with when they call my Willimantic, Connecticut law office. She frequently answers their questions, putting their minds at ease immediately. When she can't answer a question right away or after some research, she will talk with me.  As soon as we have an answer, one of us will return the call to our client to advise.

We enjoy helping people who are in trouble. It doesn't happen in every case but with some frequency, we get to help someone out of a big jam and enable that person to turn his or her life around for the better. We find great satisfaction in helping to make that possible. In most cases, I am the only person standing up for my clients' rights and I am frequently the only thing that stands between my clients and jail. 

When a lawyer defends a person charged with a crime, that lawyer not only defends the client but also all the rest of us. People don't realize that it is the criminal defense attorney who puts the brakes on the state's enormous apparatus for incarcerating people. The United States has the highest incarceration rate in the world, over 700 people per 100,000 population! Without criminal defense lawyers challenging the state's police power, the state could lock-up people for no reason at all, without regard for our constitutional rights! Criminal defense lawyers really are the first-line defense against the tyranny of a police state. By vigorously asserting defendants' constitutional rights day-in and day-out, criminal defense lawyers stop the state from arresting people and locking them up for no good reason.

I believe in those constitutional rights that some regard as mere technicalities. Those constitutional rights and the criminal defense lawyers who vigorously defend them are our protection against becoming a police state. I am very proud to be a criminal defense attorney defending our liberty and democracy as well as my clients.

Potential clients often ask if I am aggressive; as if that were the most important trait in a criminal defense lawyer. The answer is, I am effective. I want to be as effective as I possibly can be in getting the best possible results for my clients. Aggression usually breeds aggression by the other side in return and interferes with effectiveness. So, I am only aggressive when I need to be. Most of the time, there is a better way to achieve the best result.

Since about 98 percent of all cases are resolved without trial, a good negotiating strategy is usually necessary to persuade prosecutors and judges to give my clients the best outcome. I have worked hard to learn and develop excellent negotiating skills that benefit my criminal defense clients. Usually, the best results for my clients are negotiated agreements.

Trial is the last resort when negotiation fails to achieve a satisfactory result.  If a trial becomes necessary, I’m perfectly willing and able to go to trial and fight to defend my clients’ rights and freedom.

I am proud to serve my clients. I would be honored if you would give me the opportunity to defend you against whatever criminal charges may be confronting you.