Kalamazoo Violent Crimes Lawyer

Assault and Battery

Assault charges range from simple misdemeanors, like threatening someone without physical contact, to felonious assault, which involves a weapon or causes serious injury. Battery, meanwhile, involves actual physical contact.

These cases frequently hinge on disputed accounts of who did what and why. Our lawyers carefully examine witness statements, surveillance footage, and the relationship and history between the parties to present the full picture of what happened.

Domestic Violence

Michigan courts treat domestic violence charges with particular seriousness, and these offenses can carry consequences aside from the criminal penalties, including no-contact orders, loss of gun-ownership rights, and effects on child custody proceedings.

These cases often arise due to heated situations in which perspectives differ sharply, physical evidence is limited, or the complainant later wants to drop the charge. We focus on challenging the evidence, addressing the underlying circumstances, and managing the civil and family court implications simultaneously.

Armed Robbery

Robbery involves taking property from another person by force or threat. Armed robbery, which involves using or implying the use of a weapon, is prosecuted aggressively and carries a potential sentence of up to life in prison.

Eyewitness identification is central to most robbery prosecutions. It’s also one of the most unreliable forms of evidence in the criminal justice system. Our proven team knows how to undermine faulty identification procedures, scrutinize surveillance footage, and pressure-test every piece of evidence the prosecution is relying on.

Carjacking

Carjacking is among the most serious criminal offenses in Michigan, with mandatory minimum sentences and the possibility of federal charges when stolen vehicles cross state lines. Investigations move fast, and early decisions about what to say to law enforcement can shape the entire case, which is why we get to work immediately when clients retain us.

Kidnapping and Unlawful Imprisonment

Kidnapping and unlawful imprisonment charges come with severe penalties and commonly stem from circumstances that are more ambiguous than the charge suggests, such as domestic disputes, custody conflicts, and situations where the alleged victim's account differs considerably from the defendant's.

Our Kalamazoo violent crimes attorneys carefully parse the facts of the case and push back against allegations that overstate what actually occurred.

Manslaughter

Voluntary manslaughter involves intentional killing someone in the heat of passion or under circumstances that reduce moral culpability below the level of murder. Involuntary manslaughter applies to deaths caused by reckless or grossly negligent conduct without the intent to kill. Both charges are punished harshly.

The distinction between manslaughter and murder, or between manslaughter and a lawful act, is often the central issue of the case. We know how to tell our clients’ stories in a way that presents them to the jury in the most favorable light.

Murder and Homicide

Murder charges carry the most severe consequences in the criminal code, including mandatory life sentences for first-degree murder. These cases involve extensive investigations, sometimes ambiguous forensic evidence, and legal issues that demand a thorough defense from the moment of arrest.

Our legal team is skilled at evaluating physical evidence and highlighting the legal elements the prosecution must prove, and we’re relentless about challenging every weakness we find.

Arson

From razing a structure to destroying property with the intent to defraud an insurer, arson charges are founded on forensic fire-investigation evidence. However, that evidence isn’t always reliable.

Fire cause and origin analysis is a contested scientific field, and the prosecution’s experts don't always get it right. We’re prepared to retain our own fire-investigation specialists and call the government's conclusions into question.