Felony Defense Attorneys in Lawrenceville, GA

How a Felony Case Moves Through the Gwinnett County Courts

Knowing what comes next can take some of the fear out of the process. Most felony cases follow these steps.

1. Arrest and booking. Many people arrested in Gwinnett County are taken to the Gwinnett County Detention Center on University Parkway in Lawrenceville.
2. First appearance. A magistrate judge reads the charges, explains your rights, and may set a bond. This generally happens within 72 hours of arrest.
3. Preliminary hearing or indictment. The Magistrate Court can hold a hearing to decide whether probable cause exists. Felony cases usually move forward through a grand jury indictment, although a person can agree to an accusation filed by the prosecutor, often as part of a plea deal.
4. Arraignment. In Superior Court, you hear the formal charges and enter a plea. At this stage, it's usually not guilty.
5. Discovery and motions. Your lawyer receives the state's evidence and can file motions, including requests to suppress evidence or change bonds.
6. Plea or trial. Many felony cases end in a negotiated plea. Others go to a jury of 12.
7. Sentencing. If you plead guilty or are convicted, the judge decides the sentence within the legal range.

A felony case can take many months, and sometimes longer than a year. Delays are common. That's frustrating, but the time also gives a defense lawyer room to investigate.

Getting Out on Bond in a Felony Case

Bond is often the first big question families ask, so here's how it generally works.

Judges look at the seriousness of the charge, your ties to the community, your criminal history, and whether they believe you're a flight risk or a danger to others. Bond isn't automatic for every felony. For certain serious felonies, only a Superior Court judge can grant it. A defense attorney can ask a judge to set bond, lower it, or change its conditions.

What's at Stake in a Felony Case in Lawrenceville?

Sentences vary widely by offense. Some carry for a few years, some many, and some their whole life. Courts can also order probation, fines, restitution, and community service.

The consequences also last well after a sentence ends. A felony conviction can affect:

• Gun rights, since Georgia and federal law bar most convicted felons from possessing firearms
• Jobs and professional licenses, since many employers and licensing boards ask about felony convictions
• Housing, since landlords often run background checks
• Immigration status for non-citizens, which is a good reason to involve an immigration attorney as well

Georgia also has repeat-offender laws that increase punishment for people with prior felonies, and long mandatory minimum sentences for a list of "serious violent felonies." That's one reason the early stages of a case matter so much.

Options Beyond Trial for Felony Cases

Not every felony case ends with a trial or a prison term. Depending on the charge and your background, there may be other paths worth exploring:

• The Georgia First Offender Act, which can let some people with no prior felony conviction complete a sentence without a conviction on their record. It isn't available for every charge
• Gwinnett County Superior Court's accountability court programs, which include Drug Court, DUI Court, Mental Health Court, and Veterans Treatment Court
• Negotiated pleas, which may involve reduced charges or different sentencing terms

Whether any of these fit depends on the facts and the prosecutor's position. Nobody can promise one.

How Dobbins Law, LLC Approaches a Felony Defense

A strong defense starts with the evidence. Here's some of what we look at:

• How police got the evidence, since stops, searches, arrests, and interrogations all have to follow constitutional rules
• Identification, because eyewitnesses make mistakes and photo lineups can be unreliable
• Witness credibility, including motives, inconsistencies, and earlier statements
• Forensic and digital evidence, since lab results, phone records, and video each have limits
• Legal defenses, which depending on the facts might include self-defense, alibi, lack of intent, or mistaken identity

Then there's the negotiation side. Prosecutors weigh the strength of the evidence, witness cooperation, and a person's background when making offers. Kyle spent years in those conversations as a prosecutor, and he now brings that understanding to the defense table.

What to Do If You're Under Investigation or Have Been Arrested

The first moves you make can matter as much as anything that happens later. 

Keep these in mind:

• Don't talk to police without a lawyer, even if you think you can clear things up
• Clearly say you don't consent to searches
• Stay off jail phones and social media, since calls are recorded and posts can be screenshotted
• Don't contact witnesses, because even a friendly message can be misread
• Don't delete anything, since erasing texts or files can look like hiding evidence
• Call an attorney quickly. Even before an arrest, a lawyer can sometimes communicate with investigators for you

Who You'd Be Working With for a Felony Case

Kyle Dobbins has handled felony cases from both sides of the courtroom. He's a member of the Georgia Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, and our office is at 195 W Pike Street in downtown Lawrenceville.

We explain each step plainly, answer questions as they come up, and talk honestly about the strengths and weaknesses of a case. We can't predict results, but we can help you understand what you're facing.