Plea to an amended petty misdemeanor count. The client retained North Star after already pleading guilty to the crime and receiving a misdemeanor sentence that included 10 days of stayed jail. So, not only were we trying to negotiate a non-criminal outcome, but we also had to get the Court and prosecutor to agree to withdraw the guilty plea to begin with. Thankfully, a strategic approach coupled with a proactive step by the client hit the right note and the prosecutor got on board with our request. The end result is that the client will not have a criminal record. For such a young kid, that is absolutely critical to achieve. What makes this more remarkable is that she blew a .06 - needless to say, avoiding a criminal record when she was nearly over the legal limit is a terrific case result.

Stay of Adjudication to the Fleeing on Foot charge and a petty misdemeanor conviction for the underage consumption charge. The remaining charges were dismissed. With a stay of adjudication, the client is never convicted of the offense, so long as he abides by manageable terms of probation for one-year. And after he does this, he will walk away from this case without a single criminal conviction on his record since the petty misdemeanor conviction is not a crime under Minnesota law. For a college student who was doing well and has a bright future, avoiding a long-lasting criminal conviction record was necessary. Thankfully, he heeded North Star's advice to take proactive steps that convinced the prosecutor that he was a good kid, who just made some poor decisions one night. Another fantastic result for our client.

Case DISMISSED. For a young man, with an incredibly bright future, a lot was at stake to avoid a criminal record. But, the client made some smart decisions at the time of the incident, including not submitting to a PBT. Such a PBT is a search and can be declined. He smartly did so, leaving little other evidence to support the charge. And after a careful review of the evidence, including a diligent review of the evidence involving the other kids at the scene, the North Star team developed a strong argument that there simply was insufficient evidence for the case. So, some communications with the prosecutor - who we have a great relationship with (which always helps) - led him to realize the same thing and the State dismissed the case - without even a motion to dismiss pending. A perfect and just result for a good young man.

Continuance for dismissal. The client was in the process of wrapping up a prior underage consumption citation when he picked up a second while in school. Despite two pending underage consumptions, Mr. Gempeler was able to negotiate a resolution that will prevent any conviction on his record, which is critical for a college student about to enter the work force.