Felonies are typically regarded as serious crimes. The origin of the word felony comes from the Middle English word that translates to “wicked” or “evil”. In practical terms this means the potential punishment for a felony is at least one year in the state prison; one year is the lowest felony term, at present, in the state prison system. It only goes up from there. A felony conviction can lead to a sentence of life, and multiple felony convictions can lead to concurrent sentences that can add up to terms longer than any person could be expected to live.

Serious and Violent Felonies Defined

Serious and violent felonies are defined in the Penal Code; they include murder, manslaughter, mayhem, rape, arson, any burglary of the first degree, robbery or bank robbery, kidnapping, grand theft with a firearm, carjacking, throwing acid, assault with a deadly weapon, discharge of a firearm at an inhabited dwelling, continuous sexual abuse of a child, shooting from a vehicle, intimidation of victims or witnesses, criminal threats, serious attempt crimes, conspiracy, weapons crimes and many others. They can also include drug crimes [California Penal Code §1192.7(c) and California Penal Code §667.5(c)]. This is not a complete list.

Felonies and Plea Negotiations - Timing Matters

One of the dramatic differences between a felony and a misdemeanor is a law that prohibits plea bargaining for serious felonies once a defendant has been held to answer after a preliminary hearing. Plea bargaining means any bargaining, negotiation, or discussion between a criminal defendant, or his or her counsel, and a prosecuting attorney or judge, whereby the defendant agrees to plead guilty or nolo contendere, in exchange for any promises, commitments, concessions, assurances, or consideration by the prosecuting attorney or judge relating to any charge against the defendant or to the sentencing of the defendant. This has, as a practical matter, mandated that much of the negotiation for serious felonies must be done before the preliminary hearing or else the charges cannot be reduced by the District Attorney.

Felonies and Bail

Because these crimes are considered serious and severe, the bail schedule is much higher than that of misdemeanors. Furthermore, in some cases bail may be denied or may be so high that only the very wealthy or those who own property that can secure a large bail bond can obtain a release. Every county must maintain a bail schedule.

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A defense lawyer can argue that the bail should be reduced, and can help structure a release agreement with the court that may be much less costly than the original bail amount. There are multiple stages when this motion can be brought and thus there may be more than one bail hearing. For bail to be increased or decreased there must be a showing of good cause and counsel must inform the judge of any previous bail hearings. However, persistence can pay off and good cause issues can arise that were not raised earlier.

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