Is it possible to get a felony changed years later?
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
Is it possible to get a felony changed years later?
I was 19 years old when I was convicted of a felony. Believe it or not for some time after I believed I had gotten a misdemeanor. This was my only conviction. This was my first offense. Well I am 33 now and look back and realize how easily it could have been different. To start I chose no representation for some reason. I thought well I cannot afford a lawyer. Someone told me that they check your household income for a court appointed lawyer. I figured my dad made too much money and I couldn’t get one. So I represented myself. They had a tape as their evidence. I plead guilty.
Asked on February 15, 2012 under Criminal Law, California
Answers:
Aaron Fontana / Law Office of Aaron M. Fontana
Answered 12 years ago | Contributor
In California, yes, you may get a felony reduced to a misdemeanor, with some qualifications. First, the felony must have been a wobbler, meaning it could be charged by the D.A. as a felony OR as a misdemeanor. Second, probation (as opposed to a jail or prison sentence) must have been imposed in the specific case at hand. If these factors exist, your attorney can file the paper work requesting the reduction of your felony to a misdemeanor. At the same time, or soon after, you or your attorney can seek a full expungement, which will clean up the record as much as is possible.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.