Criminal Defense
Twenty-five years of high-stakes defense experience. One mission: protecting your rights, your career, and your future.
Criminal Defense
When your freedom, career, and future are at stake, you can't afford a 'plea bargain' lawyer. You need aggressive, strategic defense built on science, investigation, and trial experience.
For over 25 years, I've defended clients facing felonies, misdemeanors, OWI charges, and complex criminal cases where careers hang in the balance. My approach isn't about taking the easiest path—it's about challenging the prosecution's case, exposing weaknesses in their evidence, and fighting for outcomes that protect not just your freedom, but your professional license, your record, and your reputation.
Unlike high-volume firms that push plea deals, I focus on science-based OWI defense, challenging field sobriety tests and breathalyzer results with expert testimony. For professionals facing charges—nurses, teachers, CDL holders, security workers—I pursue non-public dispositions and creative sentencing that protect licenses. And for serious felonies, I prepare every case as if it's going to trial, because prosecutors settle better when they know you're ready to fight.
My criminal defense practice spans DUI/OWI defense, assault charges, domestic violence, drug crimes, weapons offenses, white-collar crimes, and driver's license restoration. Whether you're facing your first misdemeanor or fighting federal charges, you need an attorney who doesn't just 'handle' your case—you need someone who levels the playing field against the prosecution's resources and fights to keep your record clean.
Defensive Philosophy
Built to fight—not to settle. Every case is prepared as if it's going to trial, because that's when prosecutors take you seriously.
Most criminal defense attorneys evaluate cases by how quickly they can be resolved. We evaluate cases by how effectively we can destroy the prosecution's theory. That means starting with aggressive pre-trial investigation—obtaining and analyzing all discovery materials, police reports, body camera footage, forensic evidence, and witness statements before the prosecution can lock in their narrative.
Our investigation process begins immediately upon retention: preserving surveillance footage before it's overwritten, securing witness statements before memories fade, retaining forensic experts to challenge scientific evidence, and identifying constitutional violations that may suppress key prosecution evidence. In OWI cases, that means challenging breathalyzer calibration records and field sobriety test administration. In assault cases, it means reconstructing the incident through forensic and physical evidence.
Discovery is a weapon, not a formality. We use Michigan's discovery rules aggressively—demanding complete disclosure, filing motions to compel when prosecutors withhold evidence, and scrutinizing every item for inconsistencies, chain of custody problems, and Brady violations. Prosecutors who cut corners on discovery face consequences in our cases.
The result is a defense posture that forces prosecutors to evaluate their cases honestly. When they know we're ready for trial—with expert witnesses retained, motions filed, and their evidence challenged—they negotiate from a position of weakness, not strength. That's when outcomes improve. That's the philosophy behind every case we take.
Frequently Asked Questions
What clients need to know before their first call
Criminal Defense FAQ
The single most important thing you can do when arrested or contacted by law enforcement is invoke your right to remain silent and your right to an attorney—then stop talking. Not after you explain your side. Not after you clear up the misunderstanding. Immediately.
- Provide your name and identification when lawfully required
- Do not consent to searches of your person, vehicle, or home
- Do not answer questions about where you were, what you did, or who you were with
- Contact a criminal defense attorney before your arraignment if at all possible
Voluntary statements made before an attorney is present are among the most damaging pieces of evidence in criminal cases—and they are almost always completely avoidable.
Immediately—not after arraignment, not after you see what the charges are, not after you talk to family.
The period between arrest and arraignment is when critical decisions are made that affect the entire case. Bail conditions are set. Statements are taken. Evidence is preserved—or isn't. Pre-arraignment attorney involvement can influence bail arguments, prevent damaging statements, and begin identifying constitutional issues in the arrest or investigation before they are waived by inaction.
After charges are filed, the window for diversion programs, deferred adjudications, and pre-indictment plea negotiations begins to close. Early involvement means more options—not fewer.
For most clients, the collateral consequences of a conviction are more damaging than the sentence itself.
- Professional licenses: Nursing, teaching, law, medicine, real estate, contracting, and dozens of other licensed professions carry mandatory reporting and potential revocation triggered by criminal convictions
- Firearms rights: Any felony conviction results in permanent federal firearms prohibition. Certain misdemeanors—including domestic violence—also trigger federal firearms disabilities under the Lautenberg Amendment
- CDL and commercial driving: OWI and certain drug convictions result in mandatory federal CDL disqualification periods
- Security clearances: Criminal convictions must be disclosed and can result in clearance denial or revocation
- Immigration: Many criminal convictions trigger deportation proceedings or bars to naturalization for non-citizens
- Employment: Criminal records are accessible to employers, and many positions carry statutory bars to employment for conviction types
- Housing: Felony convictions can affect eligibility for public housing and trigger lease termination provisions
We map every collateral consequence before any plea is discussed—because a sentence that avoids jail but destroys a career is not a good outcome.
Michigan's Clean Slate Act (2021) significantly expanded set-aside eligibility—but expungement is not automatic, not immediate, and not available for all offenses.
- Misdemeanors: Eligible after 3 years from sentencing; most misdemeanors qualify under Clean Slate
- Felonies: Eligible after 7 years; up to 3 felony convictions can be set aside with restrictions
- Automatic set-aside: Certain qualifying offenses are set aside automatically after 7–10 years without new convictions
- Not eligible: Life offense felonies, criminal sexual conduct 1st/2nd degree, DUI causing death or serious injury, certain traffic offenses
A set-aside removes the conviction from public records and restores most civil rights—but the record remains accessible to law enforcement and in some licensing contexts. The best expungement strategy is preventing the conviction in the first place.
Our criminal defense practice covers the full spectrum of Michigan state court charges, with particular depth in areas that intersect with professional licensing, firearms rights, and career consequences.
- Felonies & Misdemeanors: Assault, weapons offenses, drug charges, theft, domestic violence, fraud, and all general criminal defense matters
- DUI / OWI Defense: Science-based OWI defense challenging breath and blood evidence, field sobriety tests, and the traffic stop itself
- Driver's License Restoration: DAAD/OAH hearing preparation, substance abuse evaluation coordination, and driving abstract analysis for revoked license restoration
- Creative Sentencing & Advocacy: Diversion programs (7411, HYTA), alternative sentencing, and pre-sentencing mitigation for clients whose most important exposure is collateral, not criminal
Contact us to discuss your specific situation and how our practice can address both the criminal charge and the consequences that matter most to you.