The FBI Showed Up. Do Not Make These Mistakes

10 Things to Do After the FBI Shows Up

1. Admit What You Don't Know. Then Immerse Yourself.

When the FBI showed up, I didn’t know what to do. I thought things would work out because I’d never been in trouble before, had a good lawyer, and didn’t believe I’d acted with bad intentions. I was wrong to count on those things.

Judge Pearson said sentencing is a full-time job. Treat the investigation that way. Learn the terms you’ll hear: cooperation, proffer, restitution, 5K1, Rule 35, and the probation interview. The government investigation course takes several hours. Go through it. Parts may put you to sleep. Keep going. You need to understand the process before you can prepare for it.

Ask yourself: Have I gone through the investigation resources? Can I explain the terms I’m hearing?

2. Don't Make the Situation Worse.

I lied to the FBI. I denied taking kickbacks. The Department of Justice press release said I took them. I hadn’t. I couldn’t tell my story, so I denied everything.

A man in our community told me about a proffer. The agents asked what he had for lunch. He said a cheeseburger but left out the fries and Sprite. They already knew about the fries and Sprite. They didn’t want to see him again.

Tell your lawyer everything, including the details you’re afraid to share. If you’re considering a proffer or another conversation with the government, prepare with your lawyer. Don’t spin, dodge, or leave out part of the story.

Ask yourself: Have I told my lawyer everything? What am I leaving out?

3. Learn How to Work With Your Lawyer.

Most defendants I know don’t know how to work with a lawyer. They’re scared to ask questions or raise a concern. If you haven’t hired a criminal defense lawyer before, you may not know what to ask. Start asking.

Ask to see sentencing memorandums the lawyer has written. Read how the lawyer presents a client’s case. Share the work you create—your narrative, release plan, journal entries, or book reports—and talk about how the lawyer can use it. A lawyer can’t use work they haven’t seen.

Ask your lawyer: What should I prepare now? When do you need it? How can you use it?

4. Stop Presuming Ordinary Is Extraordinary.

People say, “I cooperated. I paid money back. I pleaded guilty. I volunteered. I said I was sorry.” A judge may hear those things from many defendants. They don’t show what you’ve done since.

Michael Santos helped me write my first blog from prison and send it home to my mother. I couldn’t have done that work alone. I committed to writing every day. Then I shared what I was doing with my judge and probation officer. One blog wasn’t the work. Following through was.

Create something you can keep doing: a profile, a release plan, journal entries, book reports. Then do the work and share it with your lawyer.

Ask yourself: What am I creating? Am I following through, or have I only talked about it?

5. Put Yourself in the Shoes of the People Judging You.

Try to understand how the prosecutor may describe your conduct and what the judge may focus on. A judge may be looking at victims, justice, and deterrence. Saying “I didn’t have bad intentions” doesn’t answer those concerns.

Andrew Adler told his judge he had no excuse for being there. He acknowledged that he’d had opportunities other people in the courtroom didn’t have, and that he’d squandered them. That was a hard thing to say. It was also true.

Think about what the judge will read in the probation report and what you need to address. Ask your lawyer to help you prepare.

Ask yourself: What will the prosecutor say about my conduct? What facts will the judge see in the report? What have I left out of my account?

6. Do the Work Without Demanding a Guarantee.

I can’t guarantee that doing this work will get you a shorter sentence or the result you want. I can tell you that work I did years ago reached people I could not have expected.

I wrote a blog from prison in 2008. In 2026, the Navy read it, saw that the FBI had invited me to speak at its Academy, and contacted the agent who arrested me. That helped lead to an invitation to speak at the Navy.

I didn’t know that would happen when I wrote the blog. Do the work even when nobody can promise where it will lead.

Ask yourself: Will I do this work even if no one can guarantee what it will get me?

7. Don't Expect a Consultant to Fix This.

I’m not a fixer. There’s no button that changes what happened, and no consultant can guarantee an outcome.

If you’re considering hiring someone, ask them to show you their track record. Ask whether they’re asking you to do something they’ve done themselves. Ask what they’ll produce and how that work will fit with your lawyer’s strategy.

You don’t need to wait for a consultant to start learning, writing your story, or building a plan. Take responsibility for that work.

Ask yourself: What help do I need? What will this person actually do? Has anyone promised me an outcome they can’t control?

8. The Work Doesn't Stop at Sentencing.

Tracy received a 51-month sentence. Before she went to prison, she had a plan. She gave it to her case manager and followed through. She then helped other women build their own plans. She applied for resentencing and got nine months off. She received 12 months in a halfway house and served about 15 or 16 months.

Before you surrender, develop your profile and release plan. Give the plan to your case manager when you arrive, whether the case manager responds to it or not. Keep doing what you said you would do. Write an update to your judge. Write to the probation officer you’ll meet in the halfway house.

Ask yourself: What did I put in my plan? Am I doing it? What can I show my case manager, judge, and probation officer?

9. Use AI as a Tool, Not a Substitute for Your Work.

AI can help you organize words. It can’t do the work for you or create a record of something you haven’t done.

Judges, probation officers, and case managers are seeing AI-generated writing. A polished paragraph about regret, a brighter future, or reintegration doesn’t show what you’ve done. Use your own experience. Write about actual work. If you use AI, make sure the words reflect what you think and what you’ve done.

Ask yourself: What have I actually done that supports what I’m writing?

10. Let This Experience Become an Asset.

I’ve spoken with people who have been home for years and are still angry and miserable about prison. Some can’t talk about what happened or what they learned. I didn’t want to hide my conviction from my children or pretend prison hadn’t happened. I wanted to own it and share what I learned.

Think about how you can use your experience to help someone else. Talk about what happened. Share a lesson you learned. Don’t tell people your experience guarantees their outcome.

Ask yourself: What did I learn? How could I use that lesson to help someone else?

Thank you,

Justin Paperny

P.S. Join us live on Tuesday, October 13 at 11 am PST / 2pm EST for our weekly webinar where we break down these 10 things to do.