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You may have probably heard of a felony but don't know the meaning of what it entails. Well, let's get you enlightened.
A felony is a crime or an offense that is considered to be very serious. As it is a serious offense, the penalty for it is severe too. In other words, a felony is a category of offenses that are classified to be the most serious types. It could be violent or non-violent. Felonies carry a potential sentence at hard labor as opposed to misdemeanors which do not. Misdemeanor jail time is spent in parish or city jails.
Non-violent Felony: A violent felony doesn't involve any bloodshed, injury or death. The crimes under this may include money laundering, burglary and so on.
Violent Felony: This category involves violence which may lead to serious harm and injury or even death. They include rape, murder, child abuse and so on.
Now, you need to know that felonies differ from state to state. What could be a felony in one state could be a misdemeanor in another. A misdemeanor is an offense that is less serious than a felony. As it differs from state to state, the penalties are also different. This is why you need to know the laws of the state you reside in. In this way, you will be well informed.
Felonies are serious offenses such as:
· Rape
· Human trafficking
· Murder or attempted murder
· Robbery and burglary
· Escape from prison
· Child abuse
· Arson
· Money laundering
· Assisting in felony
· Property damage
As earlier said, a felony is a more serious crime than a misdemeanor. You should not mix this up. Normally, the jail term for misdemeanors is not more than one year in a county jail or a local one. On the other hand, anyone guilty of a felony serves a jail term of more than one year in federal prison.
Now, a misdemeanor can be elevated to be a felony. How is this possible? For instance, public drunkenness is a misdemeanor. However, if you proceed to drive while intoxicated, it becomes a felony. In this case, you can say that a misdemeanor could be changed to a felony due to aggravating factors.
As felonies are serious offenses, their punishment is serious too. Certain factors influence a felony charge. Here they are:
· The severity or seriousness of the crime done: This is put into consideration as some felonies involve serious injuries and some may even cause death.
· The court checks if you've been convicted before: If you're a first-time offender, the court may decide to be lenient with you. But if you've been convicted before, it could worsen your case.
· Weapons: If weapons were used to commit the crime, it is also put into consideration and may aggravate your case.
Asides serving your punishment, you are required to pay for injuries and damages if there was any.
According to Section 14.2 of the Louisiana State laws, a felony is a crime in which the offender may be sentenced to death or imprisonment with hard labor. The crimes which the state considers as felonies include rape or sexual assault, armed robbery, burglary, arson, kidnapping, murder, treason, a third DWI (Driving While Intoxicated) conviction and so on.
Felonies are severe crimes in Shreveport, Louisiana and the penalties are severe too. Generally, the punishment for offenders is to serve a jail term or be punished by death. It could be in addition to a fine of not less than $1000. This is asides from payment of damages if there is any. Also, you would have a bad criminal record and a restriction of your rights. Now, this is a very bad situation to happen to anyone.
If you or someone you know has been arrested and charged with a felony in Shreveport, you need to get a professional criminal defense attorney to help you with all the proceedings. As you now know, a felony is a very serious offense and to get reduced charges, you need to get a felony lawyer in Shreveport that understands criminal law very well.
Being sent to jail is not a good idea at all as it would rob you of so many things. First off, you will lose your job if you have one and will miss spending time with your family. When you eventually get out of jail after a very long time, things won't remain the same. More so, you would have a bad criminal record which will affect so many things.
Therefore, you need a knowledgeable and qualified legal attorney who will explain the severity of your crime and let you know what to expect. It is good that you invest in a knowledge felony lawyer in Shreveport to help you out. Take no chances as the penalty for a felony is very severe.
If you or your loved one is facing a felony charge, Carl Barkemeyer, Criminal Defense Attorney, has all it takes to help you. We are a law firm with professional defense lawyers that will help you get through with your case. We acknowledge the fact that felonies are serious crimes and the consequences are severe. Therefore, we do everything in our power to ensure that our clients are on the bright side.
As professionals in the field, we would let you know and fully understand the severity of your crime and what you've been charged with. Also, we would break down the Louisiana State laws on felony and also represent you in court during trials.
We aim to help you get a reduced sentence or get the court to drop your sentence. In addition to this, we would also assist you with felony expungement.
Reach out to us today and let us help you out. We've helped a lot of people handle their felony cases and we would love to help you too.
H. Taylor - Baton Rouge, Louisiana
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