It is possible to reduce the amount of time you will spend in prison. You will need the right set of facts and circumstances to reach this goal. The Minnesota Sentencing Guidelines establish the presumptive prison sentence in every serious felony case. The determination of the sentence is based on the severity level of the [...]
Depending on how the case is charged out by the prosecution, the defense of consent may be available to criminal defendants charged with rape. Consent is defined under Minnesota law as a person's words or overt actions that indicate a freely given present agreement to perform a particular sexual act. Consent does not exist simply [...]
Coming soon to a courthouse near you is a way to seal your criminal past. We have all made mistakes and fallen into trouble with the law. Now you have a chance to keep your future employer, landlord, friend, or relative from finding out about a prior conviction. On January 1, 2015, a new expungement [...]
Police may only enter your home without a warrant if you give them consent to enter or when they have probable cause to believe a crime has been committed and exigent circumstances exist.The Fourth Amendment protects all citizens against unreasonable searches by the government of "persons, houses, papers and effects." The presence of exigent circumstances [...]
In order for a person to be charged with the crime of conspiracy to sell marijuana in Minnesota, the state must be able to establish probable cause to believe that there was (1) an agreement between two or more people to sell marijuana to a third person; and (2) an overt act in furtherance of [...]
If you have been convicted of a crime of violence, Minnesota law prohibits you from shipping, transporting, possessing, or receiving a firearm. This law has a devastating effect on the rights of all Minnesota hunters who have made a mistake at some point in their past but have since become law abiding citizens. A crime [...]
It's a crime in Minnesota for a person convicted of a felony to possess a firearm. See Minn. Stat. Sec. 624.713. Before the state can obtain a conviction, it will need to prove the defendant is a person who is ineligible to possess a firearm. An experienced criminal defense attorney will advise his client to [...]
The scope of a police investigation must be limited to the original purpose for the traffic stop. If you were stopped for a burned out tail light or for speeding, the scope of the police investigation must be limited to the original purpose for the stop. The officer can only ask you related questions such [...]
In order to assert an entrapment defense in a controlled buy case, a defendant must show by a fair preponderance of the evidence that the government induced the commission of the crime. Inducement by the government requires more than merely providing a person with an opportunity to sell drugs. Soliciting a person to commit a crime in not government [...]
If you are charged with a theft offense in Minnesota, your case may be eligible for a diversion program. A diversion is a treatment program available to theft offenders and is an alternative to a conviction. The program requires you to participa...
