Hilf & Hilf, PLC attorney Daniel Hilf has a well regarded reputation for providing zealous legal representation in Bloomfield Hills for persons charged with misdemeanor offenses by the city of Bloomfield Hills, Oakland County Prosecutor’s Office, or the Michigan Attorney General’s office. Criminal offenses have a huge personal toll, upon conviction, that costs individuals freedom, educational opportunities, employment their good reputations, and the best possible future. When you are arrested or notified of a criminal charge, it becomes urgent to receive sound legal advice and aggressive legal representation, in order to put your legal troubles behind you, from an effective criminal defense lawyer.
Misdemeanor Legal Representation from an Expert Bloomfield Hills Michigan Criminal Defense Lawyer
Misdemeanors in Michigan are criminal offenses for violations of local ordinance laws, state laws, and for some tickets which are considered lower in severity than felony offenses. Typically charged misdemeanor offenses include (but are not limited to): retail fraud, domestic violence, assault and battery, aggravated assault, driving while license suspended (DWLS), drunk driving (OUI, DUI), disorderly person, and reckless driving.
For misdemeanor offenses that are alleged to occur in the city of Bloomfield Hills, Court proceedings are scheduled at the 48th District Court, which is located at 4280 Telegraph Road in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan 48302. This is really not a great place to face a criminal case if you are a Defendant, because these Judges have a reputation of being stern, tough, and conservative when it comes to bond conditions and sentencing terms.
For most misdemeanor offenses in Michigan the maximum allowable penalty is anywhere from 90 days in jail to 365 days in jail. The only exception to this potential penalty are “high court misdemeanors”, which carry up to 2 years in prison (however, the penalty can be higher if habitual offender sentencing provisions apply).
In addition to potential incarceration, a misdemeanor conviction also allows the sentencing Court to order probation, which is a form of supervision that is ordered by the court to monitor individuals to make sure they comply with what the Judge ordered. Probation can include an assortment of mandatory conditions that can make your life difficult, including: reporting to a probation officer; alcohol testing; drug testing; no going to bars; payment of fines/costs/restitution/fees; professional counseling (mental health, substance abuse, anger management, etc.); attend programs; take prescribed mental health medicines; prohibition on taking some legally prescribed medications (opiates, medical marijuana, etc.); perform many hours of community service; no contact with victims, co-Defendants, or other individuals; inability of returning to certain locations (including your home if the victim lives there); tether, etc. Failure to abide by all the probationary conditions leads to a probation violation hearing, which can lead to incarceration.
There are charge specific consequences for misdemeanor convictions that can result in personal hardships, including: loss and/or restrictions to your ability to drive a car (DWI, OWI, Driving While License Suspended, etc.); loss of hunting and fishing privileges (certain DNR offenses); loss of ability to work in a hospital setting caring for patients (various assaultive, drug, and theft related crimes); ability to lawfully posses/purchase firearms (domestic violence, stalking), etc. A misdemeanor conviction can cause immigration problems for persons who are not United States citizens, which (depending upon the circumstances) may lead to deportation, inadmissibility (inability to lawfully return to the United States), immigration detention, and the inability to seek certain forms of waivers and immigration relief.
In Michigan all misdemeanors mandate an appearance by the person charged at the District Court to address the charge or charges. The only possible exception is for persons that are incarcerated in another State or county, who sometimes have the ability to resolve the case by means of a “plea by mail” depending upon the local Court policies and the offense involved. Also, for some Courts there are certain low level misdemeanors called “payable misdemeanors” that can be resolved by the payment of money. The first appearance at court is called an arraignment, which is a proceeding before a magistrate or Judge where you are informed of the charge against you, the possible penalty the charge carries, and a bond amount is set. The bond amount can range anywhere from not having to post money with the Court (personal bond) to having to post a significant amount of money, which is determined by the Judge or magistrate after considering whether or not you pose a risk of danger to the community and whether or not you will appear for future court dates. The Judge can place strict, monitored conditions on your bond that are similar to being on probation (tether, drug testing, alcohol testing, no contact, etc.), and place you in jail if you do not fully comply with the bond conditions. It is highly recommended that you immediately retain a misdemeanor defense lawyer as early as possible to defend you. The misdemeanor defense lawyer in some instances is even able to waive the arraignment and proceed directly to a pretrial (depending upon the Judge, the accusation you are facing, your prior criminal history, and if a bench warrant was ordered), and help you obtain a reasonable bond amount and reasonable bond conditions.
For regular misdemeanors (not “high court misdemeanors”) the District Court proceeding following the arraignment is a pretrial conference. Procedurally high court misdemeanors” are different than other misdemeanors. They are treated exactly like felony cases and the applicable District Court proceedings (probable cause conference and preliminary exam) determine if the case is sent for final resolution to the Circuit Court (if a probable cause determination is made at District Court). At the pretrial, you and your attorney will try to accomplish one of the following: resolved the case by a plea and/or plea bargain; set the case for a trial (bench or jury); obtain an adjournment of the pretrial to give your lawyer more time to prepare and to address any evidentiary issues.
For all misdemeanor offenses you have essential trial rights that you are entitled to exercise, which includes:
If a conviction occurs at trial or because you decided to enter a plea (guilty or no contest), it is up to the Court to decide on the terms and conditions of sentence. You and your lawyer are given the opportunity to speak on your behalf prior to the Court imposing sentence to try and convince the Judge to be merciful when deciding upon your sentence.
Your defense only has real and proper value if you have zealous defense counsel to help you exercise your rights, because your defense is only as strong as its weakest link. You can go the public defender route if you are indigent, but it is often true in life that you get exactly what you pay for. There are a few key questions that you should ask yourself before deciding upon legal representation:
When it comes to attorney Daniel Hilf of Hilf & Hilf, PLC, the answer to all of these questions is an enthusiastic “yes”. You do not need to settle for a make up as you go, unprepared lawyer, or a lawyer who does not have your back, or anything short of a well thought out defense. Trustworthiness, client loyalty, zealousness, well prepared, being on top of his game, sharp witted, persuasive and experienced are descriptive terms that apply to attorney Daniel Hilf. Although results are never guaranteed, because everyone’s circumstances and background are different, attorney Daniel Hilf’s pledge is to help you obtain the best possible outcome taking everything into consideration.
Lawyer Daniel Hilf provides tenacious, driven, dedicated legal representation for felony and misdemeanor charges in Oakland county and elsewhere, including:
If you have to go to the 48th District Court or the Oakland Circuit Court in Pontiac for a criminal case or ticket, the time is now to contact us.