Confront Serious Allegations with Experienced
Metro Atlanta Felony Defense Lawyers
If you or your child is facing a felony in the Atlanta area, it is normal to have real concerns about what this could mean for the future. A felony case carries more weight than almost any other charge, which is why early decisions tend to matter most.
Most of the people we help are in their teens and twenties, and many of these calls come from a parent. Whether you are a parent or a young person, you may have more questions than answers right now. What you want is straightforward — for you or your child to move forward from this with their future, and their sense of themselves, intact. That is what our work is built around.
This is where the right team matters. Our law firm has been defending people in their teens and twenties since 2007. We’ve helped more than a thousand families across Metro Atlanta and North Georgia bring clarity and a plan to a stressful situation. Having a Metro Atlanta felony defense lawyer beside you means starting with a clear view of the charge, the options, and the path forward.
In Georgia, a felony is an offense that can be punished by 1 year or more of incarceration. Everything else is generally a misdemeanor. That single line changes almost everything about what is at stake.
Felony charges cover a wide range of conduct, so two people with “a felony” can be in very different situations.
In Georgia, felony cases for people charged as adults are prosecuted in Superior Court, which sits in every county. Soon after an arrest, there is usually a first appearance and a decision about bond. The case is then formally charged by accusation or indictment before it moves forward in Superior Court. If the person charged is 16 or younger and their case stays in the juvenile system, it is heard in juvenile court instead. Because the court and the county shape how a case is handled, they are among the first things our team looks at.
In Georgia, a person is treated as an adult for criminal purposes at 17, for every charge. In certain circumstances, someone as young as 13 can be sent to adult court.
For younger clients whose cases stay in juvenile court, the process and potential impacts are different.
A felony case does not sit still waiting for a court date. From the moment of an investigation or arrest, the state is already building its case — and several of the points where a defense team can do the most good come early. A case generally moves from investigation and arrest, to a first appearance where a judge sets bond, to the prosecutor’s formal charging decision, arraignment, the exchange of evidence, and then either a resolution, motions, or a trial. Waiting for those later stages to unfold on their own can quietly cost you options.
Getting a lawyer involved early can change the shape of a case. During an investigation, before charges are even filed, the right steps can influence whether charges are brought at all and whether statements or evidence end up being used against the young person. At the first appearance, a lawyer can argue for a bond the family can actually afford and for conditions that do not upend school or work. There is also a deadline most people do not know about: in a criminal case you generally have only 10 days after arraignment to file many of the motions that challenge the stop, the search, or the charges themselves — so that work often has to begin well before the arraignment date. And negotiations can happen at any point along the way, sometimes leading to a reduction or dismissal before formal charges are even filed.
If you or your child is facing a felony, it is likely one of the charges we defend most often, including:
Some of these can also be charged as misdemeanors depending on the facts, which is one reason the details matter so much early on.
In some cases, yes. A felony charge is not a felony conviction, and it is not the end of the story. Depending on the evidence, the charge, and your goals, there are several ways a felony case can end without a conviction on your record, and a strong defense team looks at all of them, not just one.
Showing the state cannot prove a felony. The first question is always whether the charge holds up. If the evidence is weak, an element is missing, evidence can be suppressed, or the facts do not support a felony, the goal may be to persuade the prosecutor to drop or decline the charge, or, when it makes sense, to having hearings to exclude evidence or take the case to trial. A charge is not valid simply because it was filed.
Reducing the charge to something less serious. Some felony cases can be resolved as a misdemeanor or a lesser offense. Sometimes that is because the facts and the law support a lower charge, such as when the value in a theft case falls below the felony line. Other times it comes through mitigation: presenting who the young person is, the circumstances, and the steps they have taken, so the prosecutor or judge agrees a lesser resolution is appropriate.
Negotiating a pretrial diversion program. Some Georgia courts offer pretrial diversion, negotiated with the prosecutor, that lets an eligible first-time offender complete a program, often community service, classes, restitution, or a period of supervision, and have the charge dismissed on completion. Availability and terms vary from one court to the next.
Negotiating entry into an accountability court program. For some cases, especially those involving substance use or mental health, a felony can be resolved through one of Georgia’s accountability courts, such as drug court or mental health court. These programs involve close supervision and treatment, and completing one can lead to a reduced or dismissed charge. They ask a lot of a participant, and eligibility depends on the charge and the county.
Using First Offender or conditional discharge, where they fit. For some first-time cases, Georgia’s First Offender Act, under O.C.G.A. § 42-8-60, lets an eligible person plead guilty, complete the terms of a sentence, and then be discharged without a conviction on their record.
A few things to keep in mind:
There is also conditional discharge, a separate option that can apply to a first drug possession case, and because it does not use up your one-time First Offender opportunity, it is often the better path where it is available. Whether either fits depends on the charge and the person’s history, and the judge has the final say.
Determining the best path for a person requires an understanding of their goals, the evidence, the charge, and their history, and the options available in a particular court. We work through the choices with you and recommend an approach built around your goals, rather than treating any one option as the default.
A felony conviction can follow a young person long after the case is over. Depending on the offense, it can affect the right to own or possess a firearm, college admissions and eligibility for financial aid, jobs and professional licenses in fields like nursing, teaching, and law, housing applications, and, for anyone who is not a U.S. citizen, their immigration status. These lasting effects are a big part of why the goal is so often to avoid a conviction in the first place, not simply to manage a sentence. Understanding what is at stake helps you make clear, confident decisions now, while the case is still taking shape.
The honest answer is that it depends on how the case ends. Under Georgia law, a felony conviction generally cannot be restricted or sealed unless they are pardoned years later, which is a large part of why the outcome matters so much. Cases that do not end in a conviction are different: charges that are dismissed, or resolved and discharged under the First Offender Act, are generally restricted, which limits who can see them. You can learn more on our record restriction page.
Your defense starts with you. We work to understand your goals, your situation, and what a good outcome actually looks like for you. We don’t apply a one-size-fits-all formula. If we decide to work together, we take the time to understand where the person is in life and where they want to go. Then we work with them to develop a plan and recommend how to move forward.
From there, the work is ours to carry: we dig into the details, weigh how each resolution could affect the record, and keep you in the loop at every step — so you are never left guessing about what comes next.
1. Contact us to schedule a time to discuss your situation.
2. Get clarity on your options by meeting with us.
3. Pick which option you want.
4. Execute the plan together.
Every young person deserves the chance to become their best self and one felony charge should not quietly close off the college plans, job prospects, and future they have been working toward. That belief is the reason we do this work.
When we take a case, we prepare the young person for court, we keep the plan built around your goals, and we make sure you understand the process as it moves.
A consultation is a two-way conversation. You come away with a clearer view of your options, and we come away with enough to say whether we are the right fit. We do not take every case that contacts us, and sorting that out is part of the process for everyone.
A quick word of caution. Your case deserves focused attention. If a firm puts an attorney on the phone the moment you call, that is worth asking why. Part of giving someone’s case focused attention means not dropping a current client’s work just to chase a new call. That is why we schedule consultations. When we sit down with you, you have our full attention, and so do the clients who came before you.
Our legal team helps families throughout Metro Atlanta and North Georgia, including these counties:
Bartow County, Carroll County, Cherokee County, Clayton County, Cobb County, DeKalb County, Douglas County, Fayette County, Forsyth County, Fulton County, Gwinnett County, Hall County, Paulding County, and Pickens County.
A felony charge is a serious matter, but it is a starting point, not a verdict. The aim is for you or your child to come through this with their future, and their sense of self, intact. The sooner our team learns the details, the sooner we can help you understand your options and build a plan around your goals.
Schedule your consultation today.
Not ready to talk yet? Download our free guide, “5 Things Not to Do After You’ve Been Charged with a Crime,” for the early missteps to avoid.
Ghanouni Teen & Young Adult Defense Firm 691 John Wesley Dobbs Ave NE unit 225, Atlanta, GA 30312
Ghanouni Teen & Young Adult Defense Firm 2765 S Main St Suite C-2, Kennesaw, GA 30144
Ghanouni Teen & Young Adult Defense Firm 3227 S. Cherokee Lane, Suite 1360, Woodstock, GA 30188