What To Do If You Have Been Convicted Of A Crime
HOW CAN YOU BE CONVICTED OF A CRIME?
Convicted by jury trial vs. Taking a plea deal.
There are two types of convictions. You may agree to take responsibility for a crime, and the court convicts you accordingly, or you may go through a jury trial and at the end of that trial be found guilty of something, resulting in a conviction. You can read more about jury trials here.
Conviction pursuant to a plea.
A plea deal happens when the prosecutor and you, through your lawyer, negotiate the case and come up with an agreement. You may agree to taking a plea deal because the evidence against you is substantial, and the terms of the deal being offered are beneficial to you in light of the evidence. You would know the terms of any agreement before deciding to take a deal. A plea deal is intended to incentivize you to take it as opposed to going to trial, so for example, in taking a plea deal you could be avoiding jail or prison time in exchange for taking it; or avoid a felony by pleading to misdemeanor. Accepting the deal and entering a plea to the court is considered an agreed upon disposition - meaning all parties are in agreement about what the sentencing recommendation should be, and are asking the court to follow it.
Conviction following a jury trial.
The other type of conviction occurs following a loss at a jury trial. If after all the evidence is presented and argument is made, the jury finds that the prosecutor met the burden of proving the crime beyond a reasonable doubt; then they would return a verdict of guilty, resulting in a conviction for that charge. Following a conviction, the Judge will then sentence you afterwards at a later sentencing hearing. You may not know what that sentence will be until the hearing.
WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU ARE CONVICTED OF A CRIME?
After a conviction, either by jury trial or plea, several things can happen:
you may be placed on probation.
you may be sentenced to jail or prison.
you may enter into a formal or informal diversion.
you may have to pay fines, fees, or restitution.
you may be required to perform community service.
you may be ordered to complete classes or treatment.
How much jail or prison time may I be looking at?
Jail time vs. Prison time
Jail and prison are not the same. A jail is a smaller, local facility, designed to hold people who are awaiting trial, or have been sentenced to time that is under one year. Prisons are larger facilities that are intended to house people for stays longer than one year. Because they are long term, prisons have more amenities and resources available to inmates than jails do. Some counties have jails that are designed for long-term inmates awaiting trials that may have more amenities than small local jail facilities do.
How much time will you serve?
If you are sentenced to jail or prison, the time that you are sentenced to serve depends on the crime, and also your criminal history. Every crime has a maximum sentence, which the court cannot exceed when sentencing you. However, sentencing “enhancements”, “aggravators”, or “special allegations” can increase the length of your sentence.
If you have multiple convictions, a judge may run your sentences concurrently, meaning at the same time; or consecutively, meaning one after the other. If you were sentenced to 30 days each on two charges and the sentence is run concurrently, that same 30 days counts for both charges. If you were sentenced to those 30 days each and they are run consecutively, they would run back to back and therefore you would serve 60 days total.
If you are dealing with a strike offense and have priors in your history, you may be subject to life in prison under a three strike law in California, Washington, or other states.
In California, the court can only sentence you to the low term, middle term, or the high term; within that maximum range. With recent changes in the law, the court cannot sentence you to the high term unless certain aggravating factors are either found true by the jury or you admit to them.
In Washington, each crime has a sentencing range. For felonies, your sentencing range depends upon your offender score which is calculated based on your criminal history. A sentencing enhancement (if admitted to or proven) can add additional time on top of your sentencing range. In Washington some charges also carry a minimum sentence, for example on a DUI charge there is a minimum number of days you will be required to serve, ranging from two to more depending on various factors.
Will I get credit for time served or be eligible for good time?
Usually when serving a prison or jail sentence, you are eligible for earning credit for good behavior, called “good time” which means that you are not required to serve the entirety of that sentence. The decision of whether or not you are granted good time is ultimately up to the facility where you are serving your time. The amount of good time that you are entitled to will depend on the offense you have been convicted of and when, but generally it ranges from 30% to 50% of the total time. Some offenses are not eligible for good time at all. If you have served time while your case was pending, your attorney can make sure that the sentencing court takes note of the time you have served and credits that towards your sentence as well.
How long will the probation be?
The length of probation will depend on the crime you are convicted of. Read the specifics below.
Washington
Misdemeanors
In Washington, there are two types of misdemeanors, regular misdemeanors, and gross misdemeanors. Regular misdemeanors carry a 2 year probation period, gross misdemeanors carry a 5 year period.
Felonies
In Washington, felonies will subject you to DOC Supervision which is parole monitored by an officer from the Department of Corrections. The length of the supervision period varies by the charge.
California
Misdemeanors
For a misdemeanor, the probation will be one year. There are exceptions to this rule for domestic violence cases and driving while under the influence cases. If you are convicted one of those crimes, you must be on probation for three years. Felonies
Felonies
A simple felony, such as grand theft, will have a statutory probationary period of two years, but it can be higher. Statutory means the length of the probation is set by law - this means the court cannot shorten that probationary period. Felonies can also be subject to parole as opposed to simple probation.
What will the terms of the probation be?
The intention of probation is that the court will set conditions you must follow as a part of your sentence, and probation monitors that you follow through with those conditions. Therefore, you will have certain terms and conditions of your probation that you must follow. The conditions you must follow will depend upon the crime you are convicted of, and the allegations that were made, therefore you may be subject to unique conditions based on your case.
As conditions of your sentence, you may be ordered to serve jail time, pay restitution, fines or fees, or do community service. The court can also require you to complete programs or classes. For example, if alcohol was involved in the crime, you may be ordered to abstain from alcohol and attend AA classes or be drug tested by your probation officer. You may have search or seizure conditions meaning that officers can search your house day or night without a warrant to enforce that condition. The court could also require you to attend counseling, anger management, or domestic violence classes, depending on your case.
WHAT TO DO AFTER A CONVICTION.
How to file for an appeal
After you are convicted of a crime, you should file a notice of appeal, this is something an attorney can do on your behalf. Be aware that a case is harder to appeal if the conviction is based on a plea, as opposed to a conviction following a jury trial. Since a plea is an agreed upon disposition, where you agree to waiving some of your rights in exchange for taking the deal, you have limited avenues to request an appeal. If your conviction resulted from a jury trial, there are many things that may give rise to the ability to appeal your case.
You may be eligible for resentencing
You are potentially eligible after your original sentencing to be resentenced. You may become eligible within 120 days of your original case, or even years after your original case concluded if you qualify under any of the new California sentencing laws.
If I lost my rights to possess a firearm because of my conviction, can I reinstate my firearms rights?
Convictions for felonies and crimes of domestic violence result in the loss of your right to possess firearms and ammunition. Some other offenses can result in a loss of these rights as well. Some prohibitions may be for life, and some may be for a period of time. The most important thing to know is that following a loss of your firearms rights they do not reinstate automatically. You will need an attorney’s help to do so.
If I was required to register as a sex offender, is there anything I can do to change that?
Some offenses, including sexual offenses and kidnapping may require you to register as a sex offender for a period of years, or for life. If you have been required to do so, there is hope to change it. We can petition the court to terminate your registration requirement and have you removed from the registry.
If you or a loved one has been convicted of a crime, and struggling with post-conviction issues, we can help. We can walk you through your options and help you decide what the next step is, to get the relief that you are looking for.
