Criminal Defense in Georgia: Charges & Penalties

Criminal Charges in Georgia: Where to Start

A criminal charge in Georgia sets several things in motion at once. There is the court case itself, with deadlines that start running at arrest. There is the bond question, which decides where you wait while the case moves. And there is the longer shadow: what a conviction would mean for your record, your job, and your license if driving is involved. The right response depends on which charge you are facing and in which court it landed. A driving on a suspended license lawyer handles the charge itself, including the added suspension a conviction triggers.

If you missed a court date and a judge issued a bench warrant, our failure to appear lawyer page explains how we move to withdraw the warrant and get you back on the calendar.

This page is the starting point for our Georgia criminal defense material. Below you will find how Georgia separates misdemeanors from felonies, how a case actually moves through the courts, and an index of our guides on specific charges, court process, and your options after an arrest.

Kohn & Yager, LLC defends criminal cases across metro Atlanta and north Georgia. Larry Kohn, Cory Yager, and Bubba Head have spent their careers in Georgia’s criminal courts, and Cory Yager worked as a police officer before he became a defense attorney. Every case is different, and nothing on this page predicts what will happen in yours.

Misdemeanors and Felonies in Georgia

Georgia’s misdemeanor sentencing statute caps punishment at twelve months in jail, and most misdemeanors also carry a fine. A smaller group of offenses is labeled “high and aggravated,” which raises the fine exposure and changes how jail time is served. Felonies start where misdemeanors end: any offense punishable by more than a year falls on the felony side, and sentences are measured in years, not months.

The gap between the two tiers can be wide even for charges that sound similar. Simple battery is usually a misdemeanor, while a conviction under Georgia’s aggravated assault statute can bring one to twenty years. Some felonies carry mandatory minimums that limit what any judge can do at sentencing, which is one reason the charging decision itself is worth fighting over early, before the case hardens.

How a Georgia Criminal Case Moves

Most cases follow the same skeleton. An arrest is followed by a first appearance, where bond is addressed. Felony charges generally go to a grand jury before the case proceeds on an indictment; misdemeanors move on an accusation. Then comes arraignment, where you enter a plea, and a window for motions that often decides what evidence the State can actually use. Most cases resolve by negotiation or dismissal before trial, but the cases that resolve well are usually the ones prepared as if trial were coming.

Georgia also gives some defendants paths that end without a conviction: pretrial intervention and diversion programs, and record restriction for charges that did not end in conviction. Whether any of these fits your case depends on the charge, the county, and your history.

Georgia Criminal Defense Guides

Assault and Battery Charges

Theft and Robbery

Drug Charges

Drug possession charges and how the schedule changes the case

Driving-Related Criminal Charges

Process, Records, and Your Options

Related Practice Areas

Talk to a Georgia Criminal Defense Lawyer

If you or someone in your family has been arrested in Georgia, the useful first step is a conversation about the specific facts: what the charge is, which court it is in, whether bond has been set, and what deadlines are already running. Consultations are free.

Call 404-567-5515 or use our contact page to reach Kohn & Yager, LLC.

When the person charged is a child, the case usually starts in juvenile court, where the process and the outcomes are different. Our juvenile defense attorneys handle delinquency cases across Georgia.

Criminal Defense Matters

Georgia Criminal Defense: Charges, Courts, and Your Options