Being arrested and charged with any criminal offense can be a nerve-wracking experience. If the offense you are charged with is a felony, there is much more at stake.
Felony offenses, in the State of Nebraska, are offenses that carry the possibility of a year or more of incarceration of convicted.
If you have been accused of committing a felony offense, you are undoubtedly wondering if a felony attorney can keep you out of prison.
Because of the unique facts and circumstances involved in every criminal prosecution, the best way to know what is likely to happen in your case is to consult with an experienced Nebraska criminal defense attorney right away.
It may help, however, to learn the factors a felony attorney generally looks at when analyzing a client’s chances of staying out of prison.
If you have questions about felony charges, Tom Petersen and his legal team with Petersen Criminal Law offer free consultations to anyone facing criminal charges in Omaha.
Contact Tom as soon as possible to get the best advice possible about your Nebraska criminal charges.
What Level of Felony Is Involved?
Like most states, the State of Nebraska classifies criminal offenses into one of two broad categories – misdemeanors and felonies.
Felonies are then further divided into ten categories, with corresponding potential penalties, as follows:
- Class I felony: death
- Class IA felony: life imprisonment
- Class IB felony:
- Maximum – life imprisonment
- Minimum – twenty years imprisonment
- Class IC felony:
- Maximum – fifty years imprisonment
- Mandatory minimum – five years imprisonment
- Class ID felony:
- Maximum — fifty years imprisonment
- Mandatory minimum — three years imprisonment
- Class II felony:
- Maximum — fifty years imprisonment
- Minimum — one-year imprisonment
- Class IIA felony:
- Maximum — twenty years imprisonment
- Minimum — none
- Class III felony:
- Maximum — four years imprisonment and two years post-release supervision or twenty-five thousand dollars fine, or both
- Minimum — none for imprisonment and nine months post-release supervision if imprisonment is imposed
- Class IIIA felony:
- Maximum — three years imprisonment and eighteen months post-release supervision or ten thousand dollars fine, or both
- Minimum — none for imprisonment and nine months post-release supervision if imprisonment is imposed]
- Class IV felony:
- Maximum — two years imprisonment and twelve months post-release supervision or ten thousand dollars fine, or both
- Minimum — none for imprisonment and nine months post-release supervision if imprisonment is imposed
The level of felony you are ultimately convicted of will play a significant role in your chances of avoiding a prison sentence.
Clearly, the likelihood that your criminal defense attorney can negotiate or argue for a sentence that does not include prison is much greater if you are convicted of a Class IV felony than if you are convicted of a Class I felony.
Moreover, some of the more serious offenses have a mandatory minimum term of incarceration attached to them if you are convicted.
Can Your Criminal History Affect Your Sentence?
Another important factor in determining your sentence is if you have a criminal history or lack thereof. The sentencing judge and/or the prosecuting attorney, when negotiating a plea agreement, will pay particular attention to any previous convictions you have.
Those convictions are “aggravating” factors. Other aggravating factors include things such as an injured victim, the crime occurring around a school or involving a minor, or the presence of a weapon during the commission of the crime.
When aggravating factors are present it becomes more difficult to argue for the minimum sentence. Conversely, “mitigating” factors make it less likely you will receive the maximum sentence.
Mitigating factors are things such as no previous convictions, cooperating with the police and/or admitting your guilt, or a long time on your current job.
How Can a Felony Attorney Help?
Hiring a Nebraska felony attorney is in your best interest because a felony attorney understands what is at stake.
Your attorney will do everything possible to avoid a conviction; however, if avoiding a conviction is not possible your attorney will do everything possible to keep you out of prison.
Contact a Nebraska Criminal Defense Lawyer Today
If you have been charged with a felony criminal offense in the State of Nebraska it is certainly in your best interest to consult with an experienced felony attorney right away to discuss what defenses might be available to you.
In Nebraska, contact the experienced team at Petersen Criminal Defense Law 24 hours a day at 402-509-8070.
Attorney Petersen was invited to join the National Advocacy for DUI Defense (NAFDD) organization in 2013. NAFDD vets thousands of lawyers and only chooses those who have achieved stellar results in DUI defense cases. Attorney Petersen was named one of the Top 50 defense attorneys in Nebraska out of more than 5,000.
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