When you are accused of a felony, your entire future is on the line. Police and prosecutors care about one thing: convictions. It is critical that you hire an experienced criminal defense attorney as early as possible to help defend your rights and fight for your innocence.
Our Dayton felony lawyer at Suhre & Associates, LLC have over a century of combined experience helping clients facing serious felony charges. We are proud of our reputation for aggressive trial advocacy and hard-fought wins.
Our aggressive approach to criminal defense means we don’t just sit back and poke holes. We strive to do more; we try to actively prove your innocence. Contact our team today for your free consultation in Dayton, OH, call us at (937) 531-0435 and get help in this important fight.
Table of Contents
How Can Suhre & Associates, LLC Help With Felony Charges in Dayton, Ohio?
Dayton felony lawyers at Suhre & Associates, LLC have helped successfully represented hundreds of clients just like you facing serious criminal charges. Our Ohio criminal defense attorneys have obtained many full acquittals at trial and achieved many favorable resolutions.
Criminal defense is an uphill battle, meaning no lawyer ever can or should guarantee results. What we can guarantee is that we will fight for you with everything we’ve got. When we defend you, we will leave no stone unturned. We’ll use our decades of experience to build your ironclad defense.
When you hire us to represent you in Dayton, Ohio, some things we may do include:
- Fighting for your release on favorable bail terms
- Asserting your right to remain silent
- Sending our own investigators to find out what really happened
- Filing motions to suppress evidence obtained in violation of your constitutional rights
- Negotiating for dismissal or reduction of charges
- Fighting to prove your innocence at trial
Of course, every case is different. Our years of experience means we know what to do no matter what type of felony you are charged with. Don’t waste another second – contact our Dayton criminal defense lawyers for a free consultation.
What are the Different Classifications of Felonies in Ohio?
A felony is the most serious type of crime you can commit in Dayton, Ohio. Felonies are distinguished from less serious misdemeanors by the seriousness of the penalty. A felony is any crime for which the maximum possible penalty is at least one year in prison, whereas a misdemeanor is any crime with a maximum penalty of a year or less in county jail.
The six types of felonies in Ohio, from most to least serious, including:
| Classification | Penalties | Examples |
| Unclassified Felonies | Death sentence or life sentence; OR 15 years to life | Aggravated murder (first penalty listed); Murder (second penalty listed) |
| First Degree Felony | 3 years to 16.5 years prison; $20,000 fine | Voluntary manslaughter, aggravated robbery, kidnapping, rape |
| Second Degree Felony | 2 years prison to 12 years prison; $15,000 fine | Felony Assault |
| Third Degree Felony | Either 1 – 5 years prison OR 9 months to 3 years prison; $10,000 fine | Firearm theft, robbery, perjury, bribery, involuntary manslaughter, drug crimes |
| Fourth Degree Felony | 6 months to 18 months prison; $5,000 fine | Car theft, Felony DUI / OVI, aggravated assault |
| Fifth Degree Felony | 6 months to one year prison; $2,500 fine | Theft over $1,000, Fraud, Drug crimes |
Of course, this table is not exhaustive, and your charges could be very different from this chart. Felony sentencing in Ohio is very complicated. Whereas some crimes are punishable by a “definite” prison term clearly stated in the statutes, others are punishable by an “indeterminate” sentence in which the judge sets the minimum and maximum terms.
Then, the offender’s release is presumed at the expiration of the minimum term. However, the Department of Corrections may keep the offender in custody beyond the minimum sentence date or earned release date for infractions and misbehavior while in custody.
Aggravating Factors and Additional Penalties
Even if two people are charged with committing the same crime, their sentences could be very different. Certain sentencing laws can increase the penalty in your case. Examples of aggravating factors that can increase the seriousness of a charge include the age of the victim, prior criminal convictions, severity of injuries, and the level of culpability (criminal responsibility).
Additional penalties stemming from a felony conviction can include mandatory registration as a sex offender for sex crimes. Other consequences could include extended community supervision in the form of probation and parole and serious collateral consequences affecting things like your right to own a firearm, vote, and serve on a jury.
Because sentencing in felony cases is so complicated, you must work with an experienced criminal defense lawyer to understand the penalties that you are facing. It is impossible to know what penalties you are facing without your criminal complaint that you receive in court.
At Suhre & Associates, LLC, we understand how scary it is to be facing felony charges. We know that good people get caught up in bad situations all the time. This is why we are passionate defenders of the accused.
How Can You Defend Against Felony Charges in Dayton?
Every case is different, so the Dayton felony lawyers at Suhre & Associates, LLC will work closely with you to build the right defense. Our team will fight for you with everything we’ve got, and we’ll leave no stone unturned in the fight to prove your innocence.
Some of the tactics our Ohio felony attorneys use, when appropriate, include:
- Filing motions to get evidence seized in violation of your Fourth Amendment rights thrown out
- Arguing that police violated your right to remain silent so incriminating statements cannot be used against you
- Working with scientific and forensic experts to prove your innocence
- Showing that you have been wrongly identified as the perpetrator
- Finding inconsistencies in the state’s evidence against you
When we defend a case, we have two goals. First, we want to find exculpatory evidence and try to prove your innocence. Second, we want to find weaknesses in the evidence against you to show that the state cannot meet its burden of proof beyond a reasonable doubt.
In felony cases, forensic evidence has become extremely common. Forensic evidence includes DNA evidence, fingerprints, ballistics, and even advanced technology like facial recognition. Due to the complexity of scientific evidence, we can bring in our own experts to analyze key evidence.
This is very important, because often the lab technicians working for the state just want to confirm the prosecutor’s theory of events. Scientific experts can also help figure out if evidence was mishandled and contaminated or if technology failed (as it often does).
Other Defense Strategies
A motion to suppress evidence is one of the most powerful tools a defense lawyer has available to them. When the police violate your rights to obtain evidence, that evidence should not be used against you in court. The court is allowed to exclude the evidence to discourage police from violating people’s rights in the future.
Another powerful tool we have at our disposal is investigators. When police cut corners and make mistakes, one of the best ways to find out is to send investigators into the field to check their work. For instance, if you have been identified by a witness as the perpetrator, an investigator may be able to find security footage showing someone else committing the crime.
No matter what felony you are accused of, you are 100% innocent unless prosecutors can convict you at a jury trial. Our passionate criminal defense lawyers believe strongly in this principle, which is why we fight felony charges as hard as we can.
Contact Our Dayton Felony Lawyers Today for Help With Your Charges
The Dayton felony lawyers at Suhre & Associates, LLC know that the clock is ticking when you are accused of a crime. When you hire us, you are not alone. Felony charges can be life changing, and you need to take this seriously.
Invoke your right to remain silent, then get in touch with our law firm, Suhre & Associates, LLC right away.
Visit our Law Office
Suhre & Associates, LLC
130 W 2nd St #310
Dayton, OH 45402
(937) 531-0435
