North Carolina Criminal Defense Attorneys
Table of Contents
A criminal charge in North Carolina puts your job, family, reputation, and freedom on the line, often with little time to react. The State moves fast. A magistrate sets bond, a court date arrives, and statements made in the first hours can shape every step that follows.
District attorneys do not wait for you to find counsel. Bond conditions get entered, first appearance is scheduled, and by the time most people understand the procedural posture they are in, the State has already framed the case.
Tee Leitner spent his early career as an Assistant District Attorney for Union County, where he tried more than 30 jury trials ranging from misdemeanors to first-degree murder. He is licensed in North Carolina state courts and the United States District Court for the Western District of North Carolina. At Leitner, Bragg & Griffin, our criminal defense attorneys use that prosecutorial background to anticipate how the State may build its case and identify the facts, evidence, and legal issues that can be challenged.
Why Choose Leitner, Bragg & Griffin for Criminal Defense in North Carolina
A criminal charge rarely arrives alone. The same person may need representation in family court when a charge affects custody, civil counsel when a charge creates a parallel dispute, or estate planning guidance when a conviction raises questions about future planning.
Our firm focuses on four core practice areas: estate planning, criminal defense, civil litigation, and family law. When legal issues overlap, our attorneys can work together within the same firm.
Our Criminal Defense Attorneys
Client Testimonials
“Hands down this law firm is the complete package! Each attorney is skilled in their own area of law and when matters cross into another attorney’s expertise, they are quick to team up for the best strategy for their clients. I could not have been more satisfied working with Jordan and Tee. When things got tough, these two never lost control and provided me a reasonable outcome and then they delivered. If you need a humble, but strong attorney for a matter, this is the only option in Monroe if you want the best! I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS FIRM FOR ANY CIVIL OR CRIMINAL NEEDS!!!!” — J.T.
“Tee is an amazing lawyer! He’s handled all of my legal matters both personal and professional. Couldn’t possibly ask for better legal counsel. Definitely recommend!!! 10/10” — B.M.
“Tim was a great lawyer and very knowledgeable. We could not have gone to court without him. He knows the law and will fight for your rights. He is a 5 star lawyer that cares about you and following the law. I’d recommend him to anyone that needs a lawyer and use him again if I ever needed him for me or my family you will not regret it. Thank god we had a lawyer like Tim that knew the law and cared enough to fight for my son’s rights.” — D.F.
Local Knowledge of Union, Mecklenburg, and Wake County Courts
Our firm operates from three offices: Monroe (201 Lancaster Avenue), Charlotte (6135 Park South Drive, Suite 210), and Raleigh (1951 Clark Avenue). Tee Leitner, Ellie Bragg, and Jordan Griffin all grew up in Monroe, attended Monroe-area schools, and returned to Union County to practice.
Monroe, Charlotte, and Raleigh courts run their criminal calendars differently, and that affects how motions, pleas, and continuances are scheduled. Knowing the building, the calendar, and the prosecutors is part of how cases get resolved.
What to Do If You’ve Been Charged With a Crime in North Carolina
Under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 15A-501, law enforcement must advise a person who has been arrested of their right to communicate with counsel and friends without unnecessary delay. Separately, Miranda rules protect a person from custodial interrogation without proper warnings and a valid waiver. Those rights shape what you should do in the hours after an arrest and what statements the State may try to use later.
The next steps matter because each one affects evidence, bond, and procedural posture. The three actions below protect rights that are easy to lose without quick help.
Do Not Speak to Investigators Without an Attorney
Statements made during custodial interrogation may be admissible at trial when Miranda warnings are properly given and validly waived. Spontaneous or volunteered statements may also be admissible even when no formal interrogation has begun.
Officers listen for admissions in conversational language, and prosecutors may use those statements to support other evidence. The safest rule is to identify yourself, decline to discuss the facts, and ask for a lawyer.
Document Everything While It’s Fresh
Write down witness names and contact information, the exact location of the arrest, the time the encounter began, and the names and badge numbers of officers involved. Photographs of the scene help when the geography of an incident becomes contested.
This material is hardest to recover weeks later and most useful at trial when the State’s version of events differs from yours.
Contact Our Office Before Your First Court Date
Under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 15A-601, a defendant held in custody generally must be brought before a district court judge for first appearance within 72 hours after being taken into custody or at the first regular session of district court in the county, whichever occurs first. If the courthouse has been closed for transactions for more than 72 hours, the first appearance must be held within 96 hours after custody begins or at the first regular session of district court, whichever occurs first.
Hiring counsel before that hearing gives your attorney time to address bond conditions and protect early procedural rights. Waiting until after first appearance often means responding to bond conditions that have already been set.
What Is the Difference Between a Felony and a Misdemeanor in North Carolina?
Misdemeanors and felonies are separated by classification, court of trial, and statute of limitations. Under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 15-1, most misdemeanors must be charged within two years of the offense, with a 10-year window applied to a short list of misdemeanors involving certain child abuse offenses, exploitation, and related conduct.
Felonies have no statute of limitations in North Carolina. The State can charge a felony today for conduct that occurred decades ago. The classification controls the maximum sentence, court of trial, and whether a conviction can later be expunged.
Misdemeanor Classes Under North Carolina Law
North Carolina divides misdemeanors into Class A1, Class 1, Class 2, and Class 3. Sentence ranges and maximum fines are set by N.C. Gen. Stat. § 15A-1340.23.
Class A1 is the highest misdemeanor classification, with sentences reaching up to 150 days for offenders at the highest prior-conviction level. Class 3 is the lowest misdemeanor classification. A Class 3 sentence can reach up to 20 days at the highest prior-conviction level, but a person convicted of a Class 3 misdemeanor who has no more than three prior convictions generally receives a fine-only judgment unless another statute provides a different penalty.
Felony Classes and Sentence Ranges
Felonies run from Class A through Class I, with Class B subdivided into B1 and B2. Class A is reserved for first-degree murder, punishable by life without parole or the death penalty.
Class I, the lowest felony classification, carries a presumptive minimum range of 4 to 6 months at the lowest prior-record level under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 15A-1340.17. Felony cases are tried in Superior Court, and a criminal defendant who pleads not guilty has the right to a jury trial there, even when pretrial matters begin in District Court.
Charges We Handle in Charlotte, Monroe, and Raleigh
Our criminal defense practice covers four sub-practices the firm runs across all three offices: felony crime, misdemeanor crime, DWI defense, and traffic violations. We also represent clients in federal criminal matters arising in the Western District of North Carolina.
The summaries below describe each area at a high level.
Felony Crime
Felony charges in North Carolina cover Class A through Class I offenses, including murder, drug trafficking, weapons offenses, sex crimes, and serious property crimes. Tee Leitner has prosecuted and defended felonies up to first-degree murder.
The stakes in felony cases can include prison time measured in years, loss or restriction of firearm rights, and collateral consequences for licensing and employment.
Misdemeanor Crime
Misdemeanor charges include assault, simple assault, larceny, drug possession, and disorderly conduct, divided into Class A1, 1, 2, and 3. A Class 3 misdemeanor still creates a permanent criminal record absent expungement under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 15A-145.5, which means a low-class conviction can affect background checks years after the case closes.
DWI and DUI Defense
Driving while impaired is governed by N.C. Gen. Stat. § 20-138.1 and runs through a six-level structured sentencing scheme. DWI defense is rarely a single-issue case.
The legal questions include whether the traffic stop was lawful, whether the arrest was supported by probable cause, and whether the chemical analysis was administered correctly. Aggravated Level One DWI sentences reach up to 36 months of active jail time.
Traffic Violations
Traffic offenses include speeding, reckless driving, and driving with a revoked license. Many traffic charges resolve through reduction to lesser offenses or a Prayer for Judgment Continued, depending on the driving record and the practice of the county where the citation was written.
Insurance points and license consequences often turn on the specific outcome rather than the charge itself.
Federal Criminal Defense
Federal charges in our region are heard in the United States District Court for the Western District of North Carolina, which covers Charlotte and surrounding counties. Federal cases trigger separate procedural rules under the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure and follow the United States Sentencing Guidelines rather than state structured sentencing.
What Happens After You’re Charged With a Crime in North Carolina?
The North Carolina criminal process moves from arrest through magistrate, first appearance, and either District Court resolution or Superior Court trial. The North Carolina Judicial Branch criminal cases overview sets out the procedural sequence applied across all 100 counties.
Knowing where your case sits in that sequence is the first step toward changing where it goes next.
Arrest, Bond, and First Appearance
After arrest, a magistrate sets the initial bond and conditions of release. First appearance under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 15A-601 must be held within 72 hours of custody when the courthouse is open, or within 96 hours when the courthouse has been closed longer than 72 hours.
At first appearance, the district court judge reviews the bond, advises the defendant of the charges, and addresses the appointment of counsel for indigent defendants.
District Court vs. Superior Court
Misdemeanor and traffic cases are tried in District Court before a judge with no jury. Felony cases generally begin in District Court for pretrial matters such as probable cause hearings, then move to Superior Court for indictment and trial.
All felony trials in North Carolina are jury trials in Superior Court. A District Court conviction can be appealed to Superior Court for trial de novo, which means the case is tried again from the beginning before a jury.
Plea Negotiations and Trial
The State can offer a plea before verdict, and many criminal cases resolve by plea rather than trial. Plea offers often rely on the strength of the State’s evidence, the defendant’s prior record level, and the charge classification.
Going to trial is the defendant’s right, not the default outcome. The decision to take a plea or proceed to trial belongs to the defendant after counsel reviews the offer against the realistic exposure at trial.
How Does North Carolina’s Structured Sentencing Work?
North Carolina sentences felony defendants under a grid system set out in N.C. Gen. Stat. § 15A-1340.17. The grid combines two inputs: the offense class and the defendant’s prior record level.
Each grid cell produces a presumptive minimum sentence range, with adjacent ranges for aggravated and mitigated outcomes. The full grid is published as the North Carolina Punishment Grids by the Administrative Office of the Courts and updated when the legislature changes class boundaries or sentence lengths.
Misdemeanor sentencing follows a parallel grid under § 15A-1340.23, with three prior conviction levels rather than six. The same logic applies in both: the higher the offense class and the more prior convictions on record, the longer the authorized sentence and the more restrictive the disposition.
Prior Record Level Calculation
Prior record level for felony sentencing runs from Level I through Level VI under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 15A-1340.14. Each prior conviction is assigned a point value based on its class: a prior Class A felony carries 10 points, a Class B1 carries 9, and so on down through misdemeanors at 1 point.
Total points place the defendant in a level, and the level reads horizontally across the sentencing grid.
Aggravating and Mitigating Factors
Aggravating factors can support a sentence above the presumptive range and include cruelty, a vulnerable victim, and offenses committed for hire. Mitigating factors can support a sentence below the presumptive range and include acceptance of responsibility, support of family, and a good-faith belief that the conduct was lawful.
The court considers the presumptive range unless the State proves an aggravating factor beyond a reasonable doubt or the defense proves a mitigating factor by a preponderance of the evidence. The decision to depart from the presumptive range remains with the court. The same framework applies across most felony classes, and the applicable range can move a sentence by months or years.
When You Should Hire a Criminal Defense Attorney in North Carolina
The strongest leverage in a criminal case usually exists before charges are filed. If you know you are under investigation, the time to retain counsel is now, not after the warrant is served.
Pre-charge representation lets your attorney communicate with detectives and prosecutors before the State commits to a charging decision. In some cases, that early communication can affect what charges get filed.
If you have already been arrested, hire counsel before first appearance. Bond conditions get set in those early hours, and conditions that go in unchallenged are harder to modify later.
Hiring counsel before any conversation with police or prosecutors also protects against statements that become admissible against you weeks later. Initial consultations at our firm are by appointment, and we do not offer free consultations for most cases.
Talk to a North Carolina Criminal Defense Attorney Today
Early action can protect rights that become harder to assert with time. Statements you have not made cannot be used against you, bond conditions can still be addressed, and evidence that still exists can still be preserved.
The hours after an arrest can affect the options available later. To schedule a consultation with our criminal defense attorneys, call 704-271-9805 for our Charlotte and Monroe offices or 919-352-9140 for our Raleigh office. You may also reach us through the contact form on our website.
Written By Tee Leitner
Tee Leitner received his undergraduate degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and received his Juris Doctrate Degree from the University of Mississippi School of Law. Tee spent time in Private Practice and at the Union County District Attorney’s Office as an Assistant District Attorney. Tee founded Leitner Bragg and Griffin in 2016.
