Find the Right Defense Attorney for Your Felony Case
A felony conviction in Utah carries severe penalties, including lengthy prison or jail terms and potential fines of many thousands of dollars. You need a good attorney.
In order to choose the right attorney, you should first understand what a felony is and what is involved in properly defending felony charges. The page presents general information on selected topics. But to fully understand what you are facing, consultation with an experienced attorney is critical.
What is a Felony?
Felony charges include the most serious criminal charges on the books in Utah. The key defining characteristic of a felony charge is the length of potential incarceration. Put simply, a charge punishable by more than a year in jail or prison is classified as a felony.
What are potential penalties for a felony conviction?
Under Utah law, there are three main classifications of felonies, each with its own range of penalties and consequences.
- First Degree Felony: This is the highest category of felony charges that involves some of the most serious crimes on the books in Utah. Punishable with the possibility of life in prison, some of these offenses carry mandatory prison sentences with minimums ranging from 5 years 25 years or more. The fine for a single conviction can be up to $10,000. First degree felonies include aggravated burglary, robbery or arson, sex-related offenses, murder, and more.
- Second Degree Felony: A felony at the second degree level is just one step removed from first degree level and can be punishable by 1 to 15 years in prison as well as a fine of up to $10,000. Examples of a second degree felony include burglary and robbery (not aggravated), aggravated assault (with serious injury), certain theft offenses, and more.
- Third Degree Felony: This is the lowest tier of Utah’s felony crimes. At the third-degree level, a felony conviction is typically punishable by 0 to 5 years in prison and a fine of up to $5,000. Crimes of this severity include forgery, some financial fraud offenses, prescription fraud, firearms offenses, some drug offenses, and more.
What kind of charges can be filed as felonies?
Felony charges include a wide range of criminal topics. Violent crimes and sex-related offenses are some of the most serious. But felony cases can also include property and financial crimes, drug-related charges, white-collar crimes, and fraud.
Under Utah law, some misdemeanor charges can be enhanced to the felony level based on aggravating factors established by statute. Other misdemeanor charges can be raised to the felony level if the person charged has a record of prior convictions for similar offenses.
What should I do if I am facing felony charges?
Even without a conviction, just being charged with felony can affect your life. A good attorney can talk with you about what you can do before the case even gets to court, what your best options in court may be, and how to move forward after the court proceedings have concluded.
What happens before court?
You may be contacted by police before a case is filed. Understanding your rights here is critical. You are not required to answer police questions about the case. Fifth Amendment rights are intended both to protect the guilty and, more important, to protect the innocent.You can (and usually should) tell police you want to talk to your attorney before you answer questions.
When prosecutors make a decision to file a case, they have the option of asking the court to issue an arrest warrant or to issue a summons. Communicating with the prosecution through your defense attorney can help reduce the risk of being blind-sided by an arrest warrant. Your attorney can also walk you through options for dealing with a warrant, bail and bond options, and the possibility of arranging for pre-trial services supervision in lieu of bail.
What are my options in court?
Court processes in a felony case are more complicated than what is involved in a misdemeanor case. But the basic outline is similar.
Your attorney should make sure that the prosecution has disclosed all necessary discovery materials. This can include more than just police reports and witness statements. Video and audio recordings, dispatch call logs, financial records, evidence and property inventory reports, affidavits filed in support of a warrant request, and other items may be involved. Independent investigation is sometimes appropriate.
Negotiations play a role in most felony cases. Engaging in negotiations does not obligate you to accept an offer, but it can expand the options that may be available to you.
Before a felony case reaches the trial stage, you are entitled to a preliminary examination and to have your attorney evaluate and file appropriate pre-trial motions. These can include suppression motions, evidentiary motions in limine, and other strategic tools.
Ultimately, if no resolution is reached, you have the choice to take your case to trial. Most often, a jury trial is a better option than having your trial heard only by a judge (a “bench trial”).
What happens after court?
If your case is dismissed or if you are found not guilty at trial, you may be eligible to begin the expungement process immediately. If you are convicted or if you resolve the case with a negotiated plea agreement, you may be placed on probation.
Felony probation in Utah is supervised by Adult Probation and Parole, a branch of the Utah Department of Corrections. Keep in mind that you may be eligible for a 402 reduction in the level of your conviction after probation is complete. You may also want to consider options for expunging the case in the future.
Choosing the Right Defense Attorney
We understand that every person and every case is unique and requires individual consideration of all your goals and needs. When facing any level of criminal charge, you need advice from an experienced defense attorney. Make sure that your rights are protected. Learn more about our criminal defense team online, or contact us directly and see what the right criminal defense attorney can do for you