Penalties of Violent Crimes in Nevada

The State of Nevada is riddled by violent crimes in the form of domestic violence with battery, murder homicide, manslaughter, robbery, and more. As violent crimes in Nevada are perpetrated through the use of deadly force, the corresponding punishments are grave. Once you are being indicted for them, your rights and freedom as a citizen will be threatened. Below are information about the penalties should you find yourself facing them.

Battery and Assault

Assault is attacking a person through the use of physical force such as punching, hitting, kicking, stabbing, and more. This is a violent crime that is punishable by a misdemeanor which includes six months in jail and fine up to $1,000. If a deadly weapon is involved, expect the assault to be a category B felony, which should mean one to six years of imprisonment and fine that are not more than $5,000.

When this is done inside the premises of home or towards family members, it turns into a domestic battery. This is a category C felony that could also turn into a category B felony when a weapon was used.  

Murder Homicide

Of course, killing a person constitutes some of the heaviest punishments not just for committing violent crimes in Nevada. For a first degree murder homicide (which is a planned way of killing), a life imprisonment with or without the possibility of a parole or a death sentence shall be imposed. For the second degree which is unintentional killing, 25 years or a lifetime of imprisonment with the possibility of parole should follow the accused are the penalties.

Manslaughter

Offenders of voluntary manslaughter or the “heat of passion” crime is punished by one to 10 years of incarceration. Notice that manslaughter does not have a life imprisonment punishment option. This is because voluntary manslaughter is usually carried out due to rage or the heat of the moment; these acts are never premeditated.

Rape

Rape has always been violent in nature and people found guilty of committing will face the charges of a category A felony. The type of penalties depend on the age of the victim. Nonetheless, all consequences include life imprisonment and a sex offender registration.

Kidnapping

Kidnapping is very complex when it comes to penalties that it can bring down. If the victim sustained injuries during the act, the kidnapping becomes a category A felony which should warrant life imprisonment. If the victim comes out unscathed, category B felony should be charged and this leads to life or 15 years of imprisonment with the possibility of parole after serving for five years.

Robbery

A robbery is also one of the violent crimes in Nevada that holds a category B felony. A minimum of two years and a maximum of 15 years of prison time shall ensue once charged to the accused.

It is only fitting that violent crimes in Nevada are reprimanded through harsh penalties as to serve as a reminder of their magnitude. Now, if you are currently charged with any of the crimes mentioned above and firmly believe that you are falsely accused, work with a Las Vegas criminal defense attorney to avoid the life-altering costs.

Why do we have Criminal Defense Laws?

According to the laws made by our founding fathers and after numerous civil revolutions and laws and bill ramifications, we know that every US citizen has a right to defend themselves from accusations of crime. The law looks for justifiable proof that indeed a crime has been committed by looking at physical evidence. The law permits that everyone is innocent until proven guilty.

So why do we have these laws? These laws are meant to protect ourselves from being severely penalized for actions that may not have been committed. These laws give everyone a legal base for defending themselves in court. In the past, many innocent people have been tried arbitrarily and they have suffered due to not having a legal process affected by the government.  A person could be lynched or thrown in prison due to “hear-say” and circumstantial evidence.  There was a time when religious or political leaders often disregarded a person’s right to defend themselves and guilt was decided almost randomly.

If there were no criminal laws that allowed a person to defend them, the fabric of society, what it stands for and even its own definition would fall and civilization as we know it would come to a halt.

Criminal defense laws are an integral part of the constitution where everyone has the right to remain free of charge unless physical evidence can be used to prove guilt of the person. Often, these laws are meant not only to provide black and white answers like guilt or innocence only but they are also observed to see that if there was a crime committed  - how much of it was deliberate or planned.  Sometimes crime is committed due to negligence, or simply due to bad circumstance.

This is how a court decides whether the crime, if committed, is a felony or a misdemeanor and how sentencing or judgement should be passed.  Not all charged are guilty and not all crime is deliberate and everyone needs to be able to tell their share of the incident. 

This is how the constitution and the laws protect us, by allowing persons to have their side to the story heard by the courts.  This is the basis of Criminal Defense and it is applicable to everyone who is charged with Homicide, DUI/DWI, domestic abuse, Juvenile crime, Sex offenses, Burglary and theft and more.. 

Please contact a criminal defense attorney if you need any help in your case.