If you or your loved one is facing criminal charges, you need someone aggressive, persistent and skillful defending your rights. A criminal conviction can forever alter the trajectory of your life. Your livelihood, your reputation, and your freedom all deserve to be defended by a firm with a practice built on trying cases, not just pleading them out. The criminal defense attorneys at Nova Law Group have decades of combined experience defending every type of criminal case and prepare each one as if it is going to trial. At Nova, derived from the Latin word for “new,” we believe that everyone deserves a chance for a new life. Schedule your free consult now to find out how we can help secure yours.
The Arizona Criminal Defense Attorneys at Nova Law Group are dedicated fighting your case with professionalism, skillfulness, aggressive advocacy, and compassionate understanding. Here’s why we are the right choice for your criminal defense:
Experienced Attorneys below
Experienced Attorneys: Our legal team is composed of highly experienced Arizona criminal defense attorneys. With years of experience trying these cases in Maricopa County courts, we bring deep knowledge and strategic insight to every case.
Comprehensive Legal Knowledge: Criminal law is complex, and our attorneys are well-versed in all aspects of it. From minor infractions to serious felonies, we have the knowledge and experience to handle any type of criminal charge.
Skills and Aggressive Advocacy
Strategic Case Preparation: We believe in meticulous case preparation. Our team conducts thorough investigations, gathers crucial evidence, and builds robust defense strategies tailored to each client’s unique situation.
Aggressive Courtroom Representation: When it comes to defending our clients, we are relentless. Our attorneys are skilled litigators who are prepared to fight aggressively in court to protect your rights and achieve the best possible outcome.
Reputation Management: We work diligently to mitigate any potential damage to your professional reputation, helping you maintain your standing in your field and community.
Skilled Negotiation: Not all cases go to trial. Our attorneys are adept negotiators who can work with prosecutors to potentially reduce charges or secure favorable plea deals when it is in the client’s best interest and we start every case with the goal of a complete dismissal of all charges.
Compassionate Understanding
Client-Centered Approach: At Nova Law Group, we prioritize our clients’ well-being. We understand the emotional toll that criminal charges can take, and we provide compassionate support throughout the legal process.
Clear Communication: We believe in transparent and open communication. Our attorneys take the time to explain legal options, answer questions, and keep clients informed about the progress of their case.
Personalized Attention: Every case is unique, and we treat it as such. Our attorneys offer personalized attention to ensure that each client feels heard, respected, and supported.
Contact Us for a Free, Confidential Consultation
If you or a loved one is facing criminal charges, don’t wait to get the legal help you need. Contact Nova Law Group today for a free consultation. Our dedicated team is here to provide the experienced defense and compassionate support you deserve. Let us help you navigate this difficult time with confidence and peace of mind.
Most people who call us have never been through this before, and the not-knowing is its own kind of pressure. Here is the basic shape of an Arizona criminal case in Maricopa County.
Initial appearance. Under Arizona Rule of Criminal Procedure 4.1, if your initial appearance does not happen within 24 hours of arrest, you must be released from custody. At that hearing the court reads the charges, addresses counsel, sets release conditions, and schedules the next date.
How a felony gets charged. The State either presents the case to a grand jury of at least nine citizens for an indictment, or proceeds by preliminary hearing. Rule 5.1 requires a preliminary hearing within 10 days of the initial appearance if you are in custody, or 20 days if you are not. Many Maricopa County felonies are charged by grand jury, and when an indictment comes first, the preliminary hearing is vacated.
Arraignment. Rule 14.2 sets arraignment within 10 days of the charging document if you are in custody, and 30 days if you are out. This is where a not-guilty plea is entered and the case is assigned to a trial division.
Pretrial. An initial pretrial conference is generally set within 45 days after arraignment. This is the stretch where disclosure comes in, where motions to suppress get filed and argued, and where a case is either resolved or set for trial.
Trial. Rule 8.2 sets the outside deadline at 150 days from arraignment if you are in custody and 180 days if you are released, with longer limits for complex cases. A final trial management conference is typically held about a week before trial, and a verdict must be unanimous.
Which courthouse. Felonies, including aggravated DUI, are heard in Maricopa County Superior Court. Misdemeanors are heard in the justice courts or in city courts such as Phoenix, Mesa, Scottsdale, Tempe, Chandler and Glendale, depending on where the offense is alleged to have occurred.
Only a small share of criminal cases in Maricopa County ever reach a jury. That is one reason we prepare every file as though it will.
Arizona sorts offenses by class, and the class drives almost everything that follows.
Misdemeanors. A class 1 misdemeanor carries up to 6 months in jail and a $2,500 fine. A class 2 carries up to 4 months and $750. A class 3 carries up to 30 days and $500. Surcharges are added on top of the base fine and add substantially to the final amount owed.
Felonies. Felonies run from class 6, the least serious, up to class 2, with class 1 reserved for homicide. For a first felony offense not designated dangerous, A.R.S. § 13-702 sets presumptive prison terms of 5 years for a class 2, 3.5 years for a class 3, 2.5 years for a class 4, 1.5 years for a class 5, and 1 year for a class 6. Probation remains available for many non-dangerous first offenses, and a class 6 felony can in some circumstances be designated a misdemeanor.
What raises the range. A historical prior felony conviction moves the case into A.R.S. § 13-703 and raises every number. A prior class 2 or 3 felony counts if committed within 10 years; a class 4, 5 or 6 counts within 5 years, excluding time spent incarcerated. A dangerous-offense designation under A.R.S. § 13-704 removes probation from the table entirely.
These are statutory ranges, not predictions. What happens in any given case depends on the facts, the evidence, the charging decisions, and the work done long before sentencing is reached.
Nova Law Group handles matters that sit alongside a criminal case and often overlap with one:
Arizona Rule of Criminal Procedure 4.1 requires an initial appearance within twenty-four hours of arrest, and provides that a person whose initial appearance does not occur in that window must be immediately released. At the initial appearance the charges are read, counsel is addressed, probable cause is reviewed, and release conditions are set. If no charging document is filed within forty-eight hours after the initial appearance, release is required. Maricopa County runs a dedicated Initial Appearance Court that operates every day.
Under Rule 14.2, arraignment happens within ten days after the charging document is filed if the defendant is in custody, and within thirty days if the defendant is not in custody. Some public summaries mention only the ten-day figure, but the rule sets both. If the initial appearance takes place in the trial court, the two proceedings can be combined.
Either is possible. Rule 5.1 requires a preliminary hearing to commence before a magistrate no later than ten days after the initial appearance if the defendant is in custody, or twenty days if not — the clock runs from the initial appearance, not from arrest. If the State obtains a grand jury indictment first, the preliminary hearing is vacated. Many Maricopa County felony cases are charged by grand jury.
Rule 8.2 sets the outer limits: one hundred fifty days from arraignment for a defendant in custody, one hundred eighty days for a defendant who has been released, and two hundred seventy days for a case designated complex. Those are ceilings measured from arraignment, and continuances are common. Very few cases actually reach a jury — the overwhelming majority resolve by plea or dismissal.
For a first, non-dangerous felony offense, A.R.S. § 13-702 sets presumptive terms of five years for a class 2, three and a half years for a class 3, two and a half years for a class 4, one and a half years for a class 5, and one year for a class 6, each with a range above and below the presumptive term. Prior convictions move the case into § 13-703, and a dangerous-offense finding moves it into § 13-704, where probation is unavailable. Class 1 misdemeanors carry up to six months in jail and a $2,500 fine under §§ 13-707 and 13-802.
The Maricopa County Attorney’s Office runs a Felony Diversion Program along with several specialized programs, and successful completion of the felony program results in dismissal with prejudice. Two facts matter enormously. First, A.R.S. § 11-365 gives the county attorney sole discretion to divert — there is no right to diversion and a judge cannot order it. Second, MCAO’s own policy states that diversion offers are made before arraignment only. For someone in custody, that entire window can close within ten days of charges being filed.
No. Treatment Assessment Screening Center permanently ceased operations on August 28, 2020. A great many Arizona law firm websites still describe TASC as a live diversion program. It was replaced by the Maricopa County Attorney’s Felony Diversion Program, which launched in May 2020 with SAGE Counseling as the provider and no participation fee.
Arizona has three separate mechanisms and they are not interchangeable. A set-aside under A.R.S. § 13-905 vacates the judgment and dismisses the charge, but the record stays public with a set-aside annotation. Sealing under A.R.S. § 13-911 hides the record from public access after a waiting period and lets the person deny the arrest or conviction in most settings. True expungement exists only for certain marijuana offenses under A.R.S. § 36-2862. Arizona has no general expungement statute.
Consultations are free and confidential. If you are not sure which of these fits your situation, call and we will tell you.
If you have been arrested, charged, or contacted by a detective, the decisions you make in the first few days matter. Nova Law Group defends misdemeanor and felony cases in the Superior Court and in municipal and justice courts across Maricopa County.
Free, confidential consultation: (480) 405-6767
Prefer not to call? Send us your case details and a member of our team will follow up with you.
Not everyone reading this page has decided to hire a lawyer yet. Some people just need to understand what is about to happen to them. These guides explain the process in plain language, with no sales pitch attached.
What Happens After an Arrest in Maricopa County – the first 24 hours, your initial appearance, release conditions, grand jury versus preliminary hearing, arraignment, and every deadline that follows.
Diversion Programs in Maricopa County – how a case gets dismissed outright, who qualifies, what disqualifies you, and the short window before arraignment when it has to be requested.
Record Sealing and Set-Asides in Arizona – the difference between sealing, setting aside, and expunging, the waiting periods, and what each one actually does for a background check.
