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Ogden Criminal Defense Lawyer

Salt Lake criminal defense lawyer

If you have been charged with a crime in Ogden, you may feel isolated, frightened, and confused. The prospect of being put on trial in front of a jury of your peers might seem intimidating, to say the least. This is to say nothing of the potential criminal penalties you may face upon conviction, including fines, jail time, and the curtailing of some of your rights. Having a skilled attorney by your side who can fight for your rights in court can make a huge difference in your case. A good lawyer will advocate on your behalf throughout your entire trial and beyond if need be.

Our lawyers are here to meet that need. We have dedicated our practice to representing criminal defendants, and we are ready to lend our expertise to your case. We will fight hard and leave no stone unturned to get you the best outcome we can for your situation.

Please reach out to our criminal defense lawyers from Overson & Bugden by calling (801) 758-2287, and Schedule a free and confidential legal consultation with our team to determine the best course of action for your case.

Types of Criminal Charges in Ogden, UT

In Ogden and the rest of Utah, criminal charges can be classified in one of three ways. Crimes will be charged as minor infractions, misdemeanors, or felonies. Misdemeanors and felonies can be subdivided further into degrees of severity. The more serious your crime was, the more severe the charges will be.

Infractions

Infractions are minor offenses that are typically punished by fines instead of jail time. Most people will probably be charged with an infraction at some point in their lives. Things like traffic violations, citations for littering, and similarly minor offenses are all infractions. Depending on what you were cited for, you may be able to deal with your infraction entirely on your own. However, if you need help dealing with an infraction, do not hesitate to contact our Ogden criminal defense lawyer.

Misdemeanors

Misdemeanors are the next step up from infractions and are more serious. While misdemeanors do not always carry lengthy prison terms, a prison term is not entirely out of the question. Many misdemeanors carry fines and prison sentences. Misdemeanors are charged as either Class A, B, or C, with A being the most serious and C being the least.

Felonies

Felonies are the most severe type of criminal charge. Felonies will be charged as either a first, second, or third-degree felony, with first-degree felonies being the most serious and third-degree being the least. Felonies tend to carry harsh penalties with extensive prison terms. Moreover, many employers will not hire convicted felons, and you may lose some rights, like the ability to own firearms, forever. hiring a skilled attorney should be one of your very first steps if you are charged with a felony. Our Ogden criminal defense attorney can help you confront any criminal charge you might be faced with.

Crimes We Can Represent You for in Ogden, UT

Our criminal defense lawyers have experience representing defendants facing a wide variety of criminal charges. Below, we will go into some of the charges we have defended clients against in the past.

Homicide/Murder Charges

Homicide refers to those crimes that involve the killing of another human being. Many different crimes fall under the umbrella of homicide, but the three most important ones to know about are murder, manslaughter, and negligent homicide.

Murder is defined under Utah Code § 76-5-203(2) as “intentionally or knowingly” causing the death of another person. Intentionally means that you, well, intended to kill someone. For example, if a defendant breaks into someone’s house and kills them, and the prosecution also finds evidence that the defendant was monitoring when the victim got home for weeks at a time, that would be strong evidence that the defendant intended to kill the victim.

Knowingly causing someone’s death is slightly different. For example, a defendant would knowingly cause someone else’s death if they pushed a very heavy coffee table out of their high-rise apartment onto a busy street. A reasonable person would know that such conduct would likely kill someone, so that would result in a murder charge.

Manslaughter Charges

Manslaughter is slightly less serious than murder but still is an incredibly serious crime. In Utah, manslaughter is defined under Utah Code § 76-5-205 as recklessly causing someone else’s death. “Recklessness” means disregarding obvious risks that someone may be hurt or killed. For example, driving at 90 miles per hour through a school zone when students are being let out into the street would be considered reckless conduct, and killing anyone through that conduct would likely result in a manslaughter charge.

Negligent Homicide Charges

Negligent homicide is the next “step down,” so to speak. It is covered under Utah Code § 76-5-206. Negligent homicide involves killings done with criminal negligence. Criminal negligence means acting in a way that ignores serious harm that a reasonable, ordinary person would recognize. For example, giving someone with a life-threatening nut allergy a product that is very likely to contain nuts may be considered negligent homicide under some circumstances.

Driving Under the Influence

Driving under the influence, or DUI, is a very serious crime detailed under Utah Code § 41-6a-502. It involves operating a motor vehicle under the influence of drugs or alcohol. There are serious penalties attached to driving under the influence, including the loss or suspension of your license, fines, jail time, or all of the above. This can be especially detrimental if your job relies on being able to drive a motor vehicle.

Theft

Theft is criminalized under Utah Code § 76-6-404. Theft is taking control of someone else’s property with the intent to permanently deprive them of it. This means that borrowing something is not theft. For example, if you borrow your friend’s T-shirt with the intent to return it the next time you see each other, that is not theft. However, if, after a few days, you decide you are going to keep the T-shirt and tell your friend it got lost, then that is theft.

There are various forms of theft denoted under this statute and, depending on their severity, can be misdemeanors or felonies. If you are being charged with theft, you should consult with our lawyers about your possible responses to the charges.

Robbery

Robbery often gets conflated with theft, but it is different. Under Utah Code § 76-6-301, robbery is unlawfully taking personal property by force or with the threat of force. The classic example of robbery is someone getting mugged in an alley and beaten up for their wallet.

The key difference between robbery and theft is the force requirement. So, while sneaking into someone’s car to steal something would be theft, threatening someone with a firearm to have them open their car for you and give you the valuables therein would be robbery.

Criminal Penalties in Ogden, UT

The penalties for criminal charges in Ogden could be as minimal as a small fine or as serious as years behind bars. The terms of your sentence will depend on the nature of your charges. Minor infractions are rarely met with prison time. Instead, you are most likely going to pay a fine. There may be other penalties depending on the nature of the infraction. For example, a traffic violation may be a minor infraction and you will pay a fine, but you might also receive points against your driver’s license.

Misdemeanor penalties include both fines and prison time. The fines are usually greater than those for infractions, but the jail time is less than it would be for felony charges. A class C misdemeanor may be punished by a jail term of no more than 90 days. For class B misdemeanors, the jail term can be no more than 6 months. Finally, for a class A misdemeanor, the jail term may be a maximum of 364 days. Even though misdemeanors may not be punished with more than 1 year in prison, even a few months in jail is a lot to cope with. Our Ogden criminal defense lawyer will help you fight your charges and hopefully you can avoid being sent to prison.

Felonies are the most serious criminal charges, and as such, they carry the harshest penalties. A third-degree felony can be punished by a term of no more than 5 years in prison. For second-degree felonies, a convicted defendant may go to prison for at least 1 year but not more than 15 years. Defendants convicted of first-degree felonies face possible prison sentences of at least 5 years to life.

The penalties for criminal charges can become very confusing when a defendant is charged with multiple crimes or a combination of felonies and misdemeanors. Our Ogden criminal defense lawyer can help you navigate the sentencing process and advocate for the most lenient sentence possible.

What Happens After an Arrest in Ogden, UT?

After you are arrested, you will be taken into police custody for booking. The booking process involves taking your mugshot, fingerprints, and other personal information to verify your identity. The police may also question you at this point. If you are interrogated as a criminal suspect in police custody, the police must read you your Miranda rights. These rights include your right to remain silent as well as your right to an attorney. Our Ogden criminal defense attorney can be by your side while the police question you to protect your rights.

What If My Child is Arrested in Ogden?

If your child is arrested in Ogden as an adult, they will be subject to the charges and penalties mentioned above. However, if your child is a minor, they may instead go through the juvenile justice system. The juvenile system works differently from the adult system, focusing on rehabilitating the juvenile rather than punishment. Rather than being “found guilty,” juveniles are instead “adjudicated delinquent.”

Your child may be held in a juvenile detention center rather than jail. Whether or not your child remains in the detention center will depend on whether their alleged crime is a holdable offense. Instead of a bail hearing, juveniles have a detention hearing. At a detention hearing, the court decides if your child will remain in the detention center or return home.

One important thing to remember if we are representing your child is that they are our client, not you – even if you, the parent, are footing the bill. Because of this, you may not have all of the information you want to have access to because of attorney-client privilege. While that may seem scary, rest assured that our lawyers will keep you updated and involved as much as is practicable.

It is possible that once your child has completed their sentence, they can have their juvenile record expunged. This way, their juvenile crimes do not follow them into adulthood. Our Ogden criminal defense attorney can help you through this process and protect your child’s rights.

Am I Out of Options If I Lose at Trial in Ogden, UT?

Many people may think that if a jury convicts them in court, then all of their options are spent. This is not the case. Even if a jury convicts you, you still have the option to appeal your case. An appeal is when you allege that something went wrong during the trial that would have changed the outcome, and the court was wrong to rule the way that they did for that reason. You can also appeal a trial at a lower level court for retrial at the district court.

In order to appeal a case for legal errors, you have to “preserve” the issue at trial. Generally, this means objecting to something or noting for the court to specifically make a record of something so that it is noted on the court record and can be appealed later. These are the kinds of things that can be challenged on appeal. What cannot be challenged in a traditional appeal to an appellate level court are factual findings at the district court level. For example, you can bring an appeal if the prosecution lets in evidence that should have been excluded, but you cannot bring an appeal if the jury found you guilty based on admissible evidence.

If you were tried in a “justice court” for a minor crime, you may be able to get a “de novo” trial on appeal. This is essentially a do-over in court but in a district court instead of the court where your case was previously heard. Unlike in a regular appeal, factual findings can be challenged in a de novo trial.

Contact Our Ogden Criminal Defense Lawyer for a Legal Consultation

If you or your child has been charged with a crime in Utah, please contact our Ogden criminal defense attorney from Overson Law, PLCC, at (801) 758-2287 and ask about a free and confidential legal consultation.