Question 1

In North Carolina, what's the difference between a Misdemeanor and a Felony?

Accepted Answer

Felony & Misdemeanor charges in Greensboro, North Carolina, sit in entirely different places. Regardless of the level of crime, our misdemeanor criminal lawyers understand that criminal charges can be scary. In a lot of situations this is your first time having criminal charges, you have a family, a career, a future, that all of a sudden is put into question because you've been charged...take a deep breath, our Greensboro criminal lawyers are here to help you and we will get thorough this together.
The simplest way to look at the difference between a felony and a misdemeanor is to understand that it's based on the amount of time or the punishment for the crime is more severe for a felony than a misdemeanor. A misdemeanor charge typically faces a possible sentence of less than one year. Relax, this doesn't mean this is what you'll receive, it just means that it is possible that you could get less than a year in custody. To give a better explanation let's look at the misdemeanor sentencing chart below:

Question 2

What type of Sentence am I facing for a Misdemeanor Charge?

Accepted Answer

If we look at the sentencing chart above, misdemeanors are divided into classes of misdemeanors which is a column on the left side of the chart. The most serious misdemeanor charges, like assault on a female and assault with a deadly weapon, are Class A1 Misdemeanors, and the lowest class misdemeanor criminal charge, is a Class 3 Misdemeanor, which is possessing less than half an ounce of marijuana
These misdemeanor classes are then punished on the basis of a persons prior criminal history, or prior conviction level which is a row across the top of the chart above. A Level 1 has no prior convictions. Someone who is a Level 2 for Misdemeanor Sentencing purposes, has between 1 - 4 prior convictions, and a Level 3 has over 5 prior convictions. Bear in mind that this chart and these levels are nothing like the felony sentencing chart, and the levels are completely different in Superior Court versus District Court in North Carolina.
So to determine, what you're facing you can look at the misdemeanor sentencing chart above, look at the Class of crime you're charged with and then match that up with the number of prior convictions you have and this would put you in the box that shows what you're facing.
For example, if you have a prior conviction for simple assault, and you're charged with misdemeanor larceny. Misdemeanor larceny is a Class 1 Misdemeanor. You'd be a record level 2 for misdemeanor sentencing purposes, so you'd look at the second column labeled, "II" and then move down to the second row labeled Class 1. You can see you'd be facing a sentence of 1 - 45 days for that charge based on the level of the misdemeanor charge and your prior record level.

Question 3

What is the punishment for a Misdemeanor in Greensboro, North Carolina?

Accepted Answer

North Carolina Misdemeanor Charges face a broad range of punishments and if we look back at the chart there's three types of punishment for misdemeanor criminal charges in North Carolina.
1.	The first is A Punishment - which stands for Active Punishment. Active means active jail time, or that in the box that judge could send you to jail for the number of days listed. For instance if you're charged with Assault on a Female, this is an A1 Misdemeanor, and you're a first offender you'd be a Level 1 facing a Class A1 punishment on the chart above. You'd be facing a sentence of up to 60 days in Jail, and the box has an A, so you could receive that entire sentence as jail time if convicted.
2.	The second is I Punishment - which stands for intermediate. When a Misdemeanor Lawyer thinks I punishment, we often think Probation. Important to note however, is that you can still get jail time with an Intermediate Sentence, just not the full amount. I Punishment, can get probation but can also get up to 1/4 of the max sentence. Our misdemeanor criminal lawyers get it, it's a little confusion so let's look at an example together.
1.	Let's say you're charged with carrying a concealed gun, which is a Class 2 Misdemeanor in North Carolina. You have a prior conviction for Simple Assault from a couple years back, and you're a Level 2 for Misdemeanor Sentencing Purposes. If we look at the misdemeanor sentencing chart above, you'd be in a C/I box and facing up to 45 days in custody. Well you can't get the full 45 day sentence because you're not in an Active Box, because there's no A associated with that box. But you can get up to 1/4th of the max sentence. Meaning you could get 1/4th of 45 days, which is roughly 11 days in jail, plus probation. We hope that example helps, but this is an example of how misdemeanor sentencing works in North Carolina.

Question 4

What type of Bond will I receive for a Misdemeanor charge in Guilford County, NC?

Accepted Answer

Misdemeanor criminal charges face a broad range of sentences as shown above, and also face a broad range of bonds. In Guilford County, NC, our judicial system is uniquely situated because we have two courthouses, one is the Greensboro Courthouse and the other is the High Point Courthouse. Because we have court in different locations, the Guilford County Judges decided it would be helpful to create bond guidelines so that way there's a bond range for misdemeanor criminal charges in Greensboro, NC.
For starters, here's a link to the Guilford County Bond Guidelines, in case you wanted to read it for yourself. This document helps there to be fairness when it comes to setting bonds, but bear in mind judges do not have to stick the Bond Guidelines, these are merely recommendations. The facts and circumstances surrounding a criminal charge may cause a magistrate or judge to set a bond above or below the guidelines, depending on those circumstances.

Question 5

What does a Judge look at when sentencing someone for a misdemeanor charge?

Accepted Answer

As we've discussed, misdemeanor charges are sentenced based on the chart above but a Guilford County Judge takes a lot into consideration when sentencing someone to a particular charge. The first is it's based on the facts, what happened with the case? The facts of the case are sometimes good for us and sometimes we wish we could take it back, especially when we see ourselves on body worn camera, and we're thinking, that doesn't look too good. A judge will take into consideration those facts, along with your prior record level.
When looking at your record level, a judge will look at the level of those prior crimes, the similarity to the current crime you're charged with, if it's the same thing as something you've been convicted of in the past, a judge may sentence more harshly than they would if it was your first time. Also, they'll look at your demeanor in court, are you respectful, does it look like you've learned your lesson and won't commit the crime again or are they hoping jail time will let you understand the significance of what you did? A Greensboro judge will also consider what you have going on, and this is where a misdemeanor lawyer can really help, is explaining the circumstances of what happened, your work situation, your family, your history, if you were under the influence of alcohol or some sort of drug, or if you were drugged. All of these are factors a judge will consider at the time of sentencing.

Greensboro Misdemeanor Lawyer

In North Carolina, what’s the difference between a Misdemeanor and a Felony?

What type of Sentence am I facing for a Misdemeanor Charge?

What is the punishment for a Misdemeanor in Greensboro, North Carolina?

What type of Bond will I receive for a Misdemeanor charge in Guilford County, NC?

What does a Judge look at when sentencing someone for a misdemeanor charge?

Garrett, Walker, Aycoth & Olson, Attorneys at Law – Misdemeanor Lawyers in Greensboro You Can Count On

North Carolina Misdemeanor Charges

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