I’m here to tell you that pleading guilty to a felony is a very big deal, especially when it comes to a subsequent federal case.
A lot of the time, we hear from clients:
“Oh, I took the plea. It was just a felony—no jail time. I didn’t think it was a big deal.”
And then it’s not a big deal—until it becomes a very big deal.
For example, we had a client take a plea to SA 20 years ago. He did no jail time; the lawyer told him it was all fine. And then the client got deported, because the very charge he pleaded guilty to made him subject to deportation. And the lawyer really messed that up.
We’ve had other clients who have pleaded guilty to felonies—or violent felonies—thinking it was not a big deal, according to their prior counsel. But when it really comes down to it, those clients increased their sentencing exposure.
Because under federal law, if you have two felony convictions for violence, you become what’s called a “career offender,” which causes your guidelines to go up and your criminal history to go up.
We’ve also had clients with three prior felonies for drugs and violence. That makes them an “armed career offender,” and that subjects them to a 15-year mandatory minimum. Guidelines go through the roof, and criminal history goes through the roof.
The stakes are much higher.
So don’t just take a felony because your lawyer is telling you there’s no jail time associated with it.
Try to fight for that misdemeanor. Try to get a better disposition.
And if your option is: take the felony or do a crazy amount of community service—like 200 hours—I’m here to tell you: do the community service. Get yourself a misdemeanor.
It’s going to make a world of difference down the road if you ever have a federal case or a state case.