Case Results

Stay of Adjudication. Mr. Adkins is becoming a bit of a wizard in the Greater Minnesota counties; nowhere did this benefit a client as much as in this case, with a man facing a possible long jail or even prison sanction for heinous threats against his neighbor (a former police officer). However, with great patience and a highly precise approach to treatment and restorative justice, the client exits with a Stay of Adjudication, no conviction, light terms on probation, and a path to full expungement of this matter in less than two years. Ridiculously wonderful results.

Departure to probation. Every now and again, the North Star team will return to the office with an outcome that doesn’t make a ton of sense, like in the First Degree Assault case described below, the Ramsey County hammer-attack that was nearly a murder, with the client avoiding prison entirely, and achieving a probationary outcome, notwithstanding EVERYONE in opposition to that result, including probation and the State and the victim, etc. Here, Mr. Adkins achieved a no jail, no prison, no challenging terms of probation result for a client facing a mandatory five years in prison, with five or more criminal history points, who was already on probation for a felony drug offense when Mr. Adkins was retained. Probation? Just two years. No fine… simply a stunning turn of events, due to the creative and relentless approach North Star presents in every case we take. This is a life saved, a family protected, and a staggeringly good result.

Diversion. Client admitted to smashing in a neighbor's window after letting her emotions get the best of her. There were no defenses and in a county that seeks to protect its people and property aggressively. The North Star team, nonetheless, pushed back, humanized our client, and eventually succeeded in getting such an incredible outcome - one that involves no admission of wrongdoing on the court record and will ultimately be a complete dismissal of the case. What's more, we pushed back on the initial restitution claim, saving our client more than a thousand dollars in the process.

Veterans Court Entry. In one of the signature victories this year, Mr. Adkins was able to convince the Veteran’s Court team to override a rule preventing these sorts of charges from participation. Client, who faced the loss of his home, his employment, and his veteran benefits, will exit that program with NO conviction, a clean record, sustained residence (back with his family, due to his exceptional commitment to treatment and sobriety), a promotion at work, and other massive benefits. No firm works harder for our veterans or active duty military, simply none. And none have the record of success we’ve obtained, and will continue to obtain. This is why we work.

Diversion that will result in a complete dismissal of the case without any admission or plea entered on the record. The client was fortunate to avoid a DWI based on the circumstances and instead only faced a careless driving. Even still, Mr. Gempeler and the North Star team successfully navigated the case, leaned on our great relationships with the local prosecutors, and secured this incredible outcome. Another fantastic result due to North Star's work.

Plea to a single DWI count, dismiss remaining two counts of the DWI case (including the obstruction of legal process charge) AND dismiss the entire separate case for driving after cancellation - inimical to public safety. Not only that, but the sentence did not include a term of in-custody time, which is mandated by law. This is truly a phenomenal result and one that can only be achieved through the creative and aggressive negotiation skills from the North Star team.

Plea to an amended count of careless driving. On top of this incredible outcome, the client has no jail to serve, no community service, a minimal fine, and essentially administrative probation for one year. The client was alleged to have refused the breath test, despite trying to provide an adequate sample. She suffered from asthma, which was exacerbated under high stress - such as being arrested for a DWI. Working with the client to get medical records verifying this, Mr. Gempeler was able to leverage this imperfect defense (imperfect because it is not recognized under the law) and the client's proactive steps to achieve this incredibly rare and fantastic outcome. A careless driving plea deal - without litigating - on a refusal charge is nearly unheard of. But these types of rare outcomes are commonplace when the North Star team is involved.

Plea to a single count, no jail to serve, and a minimal term of probation. The client blew nearly triple the legal limit and got into a single-vehicle accident. Needless to say, difficult facts to overcome, especially with no real legal defense to try to leverage. The prosecutor initially offered time to be served in custody and a minimum of four-years probation. Through a strategic approach that used time to the advantage, Mr. Gempeler eventually obtained a plea negotiation that avoided jail, lowered the probationary period to two-years, and the remaining terms and conditions are very straight forward. Considering what he was up against, the client is very pleased with this outcome and avoiding what would have come had he chosen a different firm to represent him.