State v. L.M.

Case dismissed after legal arguments. The State tried to fit a square peg in a round hole with a "creative" charge that truly lacked facts and merit. Essentially, the client was charged as being a felon in possession, even though he was never convicted of a felony. The State, instead, asserted that a felony charge was sufficient to deem someone ineligible when the person received a gross misdemeanor sentence/conviction to said felony charge. The problem - the criminal statute required a felony conviction, which the client never had, by law. Mr. Gempeler and the North Star team raised a probable cause challenge. After a motion hearing in which the State made brief oral arguments, Mr. Gempeler submitted a lengthy brief arguing that there is no law that authorizes this charge. The City of Minneapolis immediately asked for a continuance to further assess its position and even brought in its in-house appellate team to research the arguments. After taking additional time, the City relented and dismissed, admitting defeat.