What is a Felony

Felonies are criminal offenses which a person may have committed. The punishment for the same is a year or more and the person may be sentenced to death. A person who has been convicted is called a felon. 'Felony' has its origin in the English common law. In the past, felonies were crimes wherein the goods and land of a convicted person were confiscated.

It's quite common for people to be confused between misdemeanor vs. felony, but there is definitely a difference. If the court punishes a person for exactly a year or less, it's called a misdemeanor, and in case the prison term exceeds a year, it's called a felony.

The charges under which a person can be declared a felon are possession of heroin or cocaine, grand larceny, armed robbery, rape, and murder.

The classification of felony depends on the duration of the sentence and that depends on the severity of the crime. Continue reading the following for more details on the subject.

There are different felony types, and depending on the gravity of the crime committed, a person is punished accordingly. Felony can be classified into different classes―Class A to Class I felony charges.

As per a Class A felony, a person may be imprisoned for life, depending on the severity of the crime. Crimes like murder and first degree intentional homicide come under this class.

Crimes like kidnapping, first degree sexual assault, conspiracy, first degree reckless homicide, and second degree intentional homicide come under Class B felony charges. If convicted, a person may be imprisoned for a maximum period of 60 years.

If a person has been convicted of Class C felony, he or she has to pay a fine of maximum US $100,000 or a maximum imprisonment term of 40 years, or both. Crimes like vehicular homicide while intoxicated, robbery, arson, kidnapping, and second degree sexual assault come under this class.

What is a felony classification for Class D felony charges? Crimes such as solicitation of a child, child enticement, vehicular homicide while intoxicated, felony vehicular homicide, and felony drunk driving comes under this category. Class D charges carry a maximum imprisonment term of 25 years or a fine of US $100,000, or both.

Class E felony charges carry a fine or US $50,000 or a maximum imprisonment term of 15 years, or both. Burglary and bodily harm comes under this class.

Crimes like theft, stalking, sexual exploitation, and failure to prevent sexual exploitation of a child comes under Class F felony charge. Under this category, a person may be imprisoned for a maximum of 12½ years or may be fined with a sum of US $25,000, or both.

Class G felony charges include theft, embezzlement, negligent vehicular homicide, and negligent homicide. As per the law, a person convicted of these crimes may be imprisoned for a maximum of 10 years or a may be fined US $25,000, or both.

As per the law, Class H and I felony charges carry maximum imprisonment term of 6 and 3½ years or a fine of US $10,000 or both, respectively. Crimes like stalking, embezzlement, etc. fall under Class H felony, while substantial bodily harm and child pornography comes under Class I felony charges.

One can get in touch with a felony lawyer so that they are aware of the charges in each class. There may be slight changes in the rules of different states, but the basic classification is the same. Some states may include some other crimes within these categories while others may enhance the punishment under each class.