Felony Cases
High-stakes defense for Kentucky felony charges where your future is on the line.
Overview
A felony charge in Kentucky is the most serious category of criminal offense, carrying the possibility of state prison sentences ranging from one year to life imprisonment, and in capital cases, the death penalty. Under KRS Chapter 532, Kentucky classifies felonies into four categories with escalating severity. The consequences extend far beyond incarceration: a felony conviction permanently alters your civil rights, employment prospects, housing eligibility, and family relationships.
Barrett Law Firm handles felony cases across the full spectrum of criminal charges in Kentucky circuit courts. Felony prosecution involves grand jury proceedings, extensive discovery, potential expert witnesses, and complex legal motions that require an attorney with significant trial experience and a thorough command of Kentucky criminal procedure (RCr).
When you face felony charges, the prosecution has substantial resources at its disposal, including investigators, forensic labs, and cooperating witnesses. You need a defense attorney who will match that effort, investigate every fact, challenge every assumption, and hold the Commonwealth to its burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Potential Penalties
- •Class D Felony (1-5 years): Includes theft over $500, possession of controlled substances, fourth-offense DUI, criminal mischief first degree, and certain assault charges
- •Class C Felony (5-10 years): Includes burglary second degree, assault second degree, theft over $10,000, trafficking in controlled substances (smaller quantities), and robbery third degree
- •Class B Felony (10-20 years): Includes robbery first degree, assault first degree, burglary first degree, manufacturing methamphetamine, and sexual abuse first degree
- •Class A Felony (20-50 years or life): Includes murder, kidnapping, rape first degree, sodomy first degree, and large-scale drug trafficking
- •Persistent Felony Offender (PFO) enhancement under KRS 532.080: A second felony conviction can enhance sentencing by one class; a third or subsequent conviction can result in 20 years to life regardless of the underlying offense class
- •Collateral consequences: loss of voting rights (restorable only by executive pardon), permanent firearm prohibition under both state and federal law, sex offender registration if applicable, loss of professional licenses, federal student aid ineligibility
How Barrett Law Fights For You
- •Grand jury challenge: Examining whether the Commonwealth presented sufficient evidence to the grand jury and whether any procedural irregularities tainted the indictment
- •Suppression motions: Filing comprehensive motions to suppress evidence obtained through unconstitutional searches, coerced confessions, or violations of Miranda rights
- •Witness impeachment: Thoroughly investigating the backgrounds, motivations, and inconsistencies of prosecution witnesses, particularly cooperating co-defendants who receive sentencing benefits for testimony
- •Expert witness retention: Engaging forensic experts, medical professionals, psychologists, or other specialists to challenge the Commonwealth's evidence or support affirmative defenses
- •Sentencing advocacy: When conviction occurs, presenting comprehensive mitigation evidence including mental health history, substance abuse context, family circumstances, and rehabilitation efforts to minimize sentencing exposure
Frequently Asked Questions
Facing Felony Cases Charges?
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