If you get arrested, the first call you make should go to a criminal defense attorney. Not a ball bondsman, not a friend who “knows a guy.” The Sixth Amendment guarantees you the right to a lawyer the moment you’re taken into custody. Every hour you wait to use the right is an hour prosecutors spend building the case against you. The law firms below have spent decades doing exactly the opposite, which is tearing those cases apart.

Arrests happen constantly. FBI data shows more than 375,000 arrests were made in the US in 2023 for violent crime offenses alone, and the numbers don’t even count drug charges, DUIs, or property crimes. Someone in your county is getting booked right now, and chances are they didn’t see it coming either.

But who should you call? There are over 450,000 law firms in the United States. You can call only one.

This is why we are making a list. A list of top law firms. Obviously, it would be too much to cover an entire country, which is why we will be focusing on only one state in this blog: Indiana.

Indiana is home to many top law firms, like The Criminal Defense Team. In this blog, we will see about five of them.

1. The Criminal Defense Team, Baldwin Perry & Wiley, P.C.

Criminal law is the only thing this Indianapolis firm practices. Across its Franklin, Indianapolis, and Noblesville offices, it fields five Nationally Board-Certified Criminal Trial Specialists.

Here’s something that actually matters. Indiana has exactly five attorneys with that certification statewide, and all five work here.

Founding partner Andrew J. Baldwin was recently featured on CBS’s “48 Hours” for his defense of Alison Davis in a high-profile murder trial. The firm’s case history includes a felony drug charge thrown out after partner Max Wiley proved an unconstitutional detention and a murder charge that ended in a voluntary manslaughter verdict instead.

• Over 100 years of combined trial experience firmwide
• Two attorneys and a paralegal on every case, not one lawyer working solo
• Free 24/7 consultations at (317) 687-8326

2. Wilson Elser

Wilson Elser plays in a different league entirely. 1,400+ attorneys, 94th in the AmLaw 100 by gross revenue, and offices in Indianapolis and Merrillville. In 2025, the firm handled more than 100,000 defense and coverage matters.

But here’s the catch: Wilson Elser is a civil litigation and insurance defense firm, not a street-level criminal defense shop. It’s worth a call if your arrest overlaps with business liability or a corporate entity facing scrutiny alongside you. For a straightforward DUI or drug possession charge, a dedicated criminal defense firm will serve you better.

3. Arnold Terrill Ridenour, P.C.

This Fort Wayne firm has spent decades in Allen County courtrooms, and its founders lead with a simple point: they defend people, not case files.

Attorneys Bart Arnold, Jeff Terrill, Gregory Ridenour, and Sean Arata bring a combined 75+ years to cases spanning OWI/DUI, felonies, and white-collar crime.

They answer calls around the clock and offer free phone consultations, which counts for more than it sounds like, since the first 24 hours after an arrest often shape everything that follows. Clients consistently mention the same thing in reviews.

4. Law Offices of Jason Jackson & Assoc

Jason Jackson has defended Indiana clients since 2000, and the firm’s reputation rests on something most defense lawyers don’t offer. Flat fees. You know the cost before the case starts, which removes one layer of stress from an already stressful situation.

Jackson carries an AV Preeminent rating from Martindale-Hubbell (the highest peer-reviewed distinction in the profession) plus recognition from Super Lawyers and Avvo’s Clients’ Choice Award.

Operating out of Noblesville and Lafayette, the firm handles drug offenses, DUI/OWI, assault, and sex offense cases, along with post-conviction work like expungements and probation violations.

• Evening and weekend appointments for clients who can’t miss work
• 25 years of Jackson’s personal courtroom experience in Indiana

5. Vanderpool Law Firm, PC

Vanderpool takes a different shape than the rest of this list. Run by father-and-son attorneys Daniel J. Vanderpool and Isaiah P. Vanderpool out of Warsaw and Wabash, the firm splits its practice between personal injury and criminal defense — a combination that pays off when a charge and a civil claim collide, like a DUI that also caused a crash.

Their criminal caseload covers

• Felonies
• Misdemeanors
• DUI/OWI
• Invasion of privacy
• Expungements.

Two offices, one in each city, mean shorter drives for clients across Kosciusko and Wabash counties—a small detail, but not a trivial one when you’re already juggling court dates.

Conclusion

An arrest doesn’t wait for a convenient time, and neither should your response. Whether you’re facing charges in Marion County, Allen County, or anywhere else in Indiana, the five teams above share one trait. They treat the first phone call as the start of your defense, not paperwork to process later. Save this list, and if you’re ever on the wrong side of handcuffs, start dialing before you say anything else to police.

Key Takeaways

• Call a criminal defense attorney immediately after an arrest — the Sixth Amendment guarantees that right the moment you’re in custody.
• The Criminal Defense Team, Baldwin Perry & Wiley, P.C., employs all five of Indiana’s Nationally Board-Certified Criminal Trial Specialists.
• Wilson Elser is a large-scale civil litigation and insurance defense firm, better suited to cases with business liability exposure than street-level criminal charges.
• Arnold Terrill Ridenour, P.C., brings decades of combined Indiana courtroom experience with flexible, client-friendly access.
• Law Offices of Jason Jackson & Assoc. has 25 years of Indiana criminal defense experience and charges flat fees so clients know the cost upfront.
• Vanderpool Law Firm handles both personal injury and criminal defense, which helps when a charge overlaps with a civil claim, like a DUI tied to a crash.